Legendia: Symphony of the Past
by Chamofleur
Summary: Everything was going normal to most of the party, so a picnic was planned. Everything went fine, except for a falling girl! Pairings: Possible SenelxChloe. Sequel to Operation: Date Attack. Complete!
1. Prologue

Okay, guys, welcome to my most recent ToL fanfic, 'Symphony of the Past'. This is somewhat of a Sequel to "Operation: Date Attack", and if you didn't read the summary, it's about a girl who fell from the sky. ; To all my reviewers from "O: DA!" I thank you for your kind words and hope to get more help from you again. If the prologue goes well, then I'll post chapter one. Enjoy!

Holyknightsteve: Yeah, I know, Senel's pretty rude, isn't he? He's a bit more of a gentleman as the story goes on, though. You'll see. XD

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PROLOGUE:

"Where is everyone? They should have been here a while ago..." Senel asked. Chloe, who had come with him to the Altar of the Sea, nodded and said, "Do you think we accidentally gave them the wrong time?" That question was soon answered when Shirley Fennes and Will Raynard came up to the top of the Altar, greeting Senel and Chloe. "C! Senel! Sorry we're so late. I was trying to find the old picnic blanket I had, and Will had to--" Shirley's voice was interrupted by a young girl, Harriet, who had followed them up. "My dad was trying to run away from my cooking! And I told him it had gotten better!" Will shook his head and replied it wasn't that, I was, ah..." Harriet shook a finger at him and argued, "You know it was that. But it's all right, because I already brought the food. And everyone's eating it or I'll make sure they're punished!" Everyone stood silent at that comment, and Senel and Will sighed.

Soon, the silence was interrupted by a yell.

"Yeehaw!" The voice screamed. To no one's surprise, it was Moses, with Jay and Norma following him, somewhat embarrassed. "Really, Moses, keep your idiotic wails to yourself. You don't need to kill any more monsters." Moses grew angry at that comment and said, "Hah! It's not like I was tryin' to kill any monsters. Just annoyin' short kids in purple pajamas." Jay became furious at the comment and yelled, "They're not pajamas, and I've told you already!" At that comment, Will and Norma stepped in and gave each a whack on the head. "Just like old times! Aah, this picnic is gonna be the re-unitement of the Fun Bunch!" Norma cheered. Shirley nodded and replied, "The Boredom Busters, too!" Chloe was confused when she had heard that name. "Boredom Busters..?" Norma explained the whole thing. "Well, the Boredom Busters is a group committed to...well, busting boredom! Right, Merry Merines?" Shirley smiled and nodded. "Yeah!"

"Well, in any case, we should start this picnic before the wind starts to pick up. At this altitude, it could blow our picnic blanket away." Will exclaimed, professor-like.

Everyone did that group nod that they always do, and sat down on the picnic basket, enjoying life, and remembering Grune's love of picnics as they did so. In the middle of eating, Norma moved closer to Chloe and whispered, "So, C, make a move yet?" Chloe blushed and responded, "No, Norma. I don't plan to." Norma gasped and yelled, "Why!" At that moment, everyone stared at the two. Harriet broke the silence and asked, "What's wrong with you?" Norma, obviously frustrated, dragged Chloe to the side of the Altar and asked, "C, what IS wrong with you! You are LIVING with Senny! L-I-V-I-N-G! You should at least tell him how you feel!" Chloe, who was still blushing, said, "I-I just can't. I know he's still trying to get over Stella. He looks at the picture of her every day when I see him. I think I still need to be patient, that's all." Norma sighed. "Ah, whatever, C. You should really make your move, but it's not in my place. You've talked it out with Shirl, right?" Chloe shook her head, said nothing and just walked back to the picnic blanket. "Geez, she's been living with the guy for over a month now. Someone's gotta knock some sense into Senny."

"What were you talking to Norma about?" Senel asked as Chloe sat down. "N-Nothing! Nothing you need to know," Chloe said with a smile, her cheeks turning that bright pink color again. Senel shrugged and began to eat a sandwich. The moment he bit it, Harriet glared at him while Jay said, "You're brave, eating some of that menace's cooking." Harriet overheard that and was fuming. "Sh-Shut up! Don't make fun of me or I'll have to hand feed it to you!"

Jay sighed, obviously angered at that, but obeyed orders. Just at that moment, he felt an odd presence. "Does anyone feel strange here?" Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at Jay. Moses shrugged while saying, "Nah, it's just yer ninja pajamas on too tight." A gust of wind passed by and blew northward toward the center of the Altar. Jay had ignored the comment that Moses had spit at him, but kept his eye on the Altar. "Hey, what's that!" Shirley yelled as she pointed to the Altar. At that moment, a white beam of light flashed at the Altar. Everyone ran up cautiously to see what exactly was going on.

As everyone circled the Altar, the power of the light grew to engulf the whole Altar in a white light. As the light's brightness covered the eyes of everyone, Senel heard a small 'Boom' sound, as if someone fell from a small distance, but who could it have been?

As the light faded from its complete brightness, Senel opened his eyes and noticed a body in the middle of the light where everyone was surrounded. "Everyone, look!" Will said as he pointed to the body of the girl. "Could she be a Ferines?" Shirley asked. Jay looked at Shirley and asked, don't the Radiant have blonde hair and blue eyes? Why would she be one of the Radiant?" "Not all Ferines look that way. Usually, people who are 100 Ferines have that look, but she may be part Ferines if she's been taken here by Nerifes."

The girl lying on the ground still lay unconscious, her Warlock Garb ripped, and her long, white hair, dirtied by the travels she may have taken. While Chloe was in thought, she noticed something on this girl's back. "Wait, it looks like she's got a sword. She may well be an eren." Senel nodded and explained, "Well, it's no use to just leave her here. We can take her to my house and ask her about how she got here when she wakes up."

The moment Senel tried to pick her up from the ground, her brown eyes opened. She screamed at seeing everyone surrounding her as she looked around frantically. "Mama! Papa? Wh-Where are you? Where am I? Where's Rem! I need to talk to Rem!" Just then, she turned around and pointed to Senel. Before she could say anything, though, she had fallen down and blacked out. "What's wrong with her?" Shirley asked Will in a worried tone.

"I'm not sure. She may have passed out out of shock We should probably head back to town with her. Harriet, Moses, I trust you'll take everything back home." Harriet and Moses sighed, but did as they were told, and everyone headed to town to unlock the mystery of this girl.

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Okay, hope you all liked the prologue! I know that there is a story that has just been written similar to this about an OC child, but I'm true to my word, and that story may have been planned shortly after my plans of this fanfiction. I would never steal anyone's ideas, and anyone who does, Shame. On. You. 'Nuff said. Anyway, please Review!


	2. Chapter 1

Hey, everyone! Thanks for the reviews, those who sent them in, and your kind comments/helpfulness. By the way, just to clear things up, the OC is NOT a Ferines. She's Orerines, even though Shirley mentioned it, and because Piro got confused. Enjoy!

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CHAPTER ONE:

"Blanca, I don't think this is such a good idea!" A little red-haired boy said as he spoke to her, "You might get killed!"

"I don't care! I have to get away from here! Rem! Please, take me back! Take me back 12 years!"

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"Is she okay?"

"Is she even alive?"

"Maybe you should back up, Norma."

These were the sounds heard by the girl as she opened her eyes. Blurry forms of people came into view, all staring and looking intently at her. Harriet decided to ask her something: "Hey, um...What's your name?" The weak looking girl gave a smile and faintly said, "Blanca. My name's...Blanca...At least, I'm pretty sure it is..." Norma, as usual, got into the conversation as quickly as possible. "Whaddya mean, 'I'm pretty sure it is?' You're supposed to know your own name." "Norma, let her be. She's probably been through a lot," Chloe interrupted as she came up the stairs with a small tray. She gently put the tray on the bed Blanca was laying in, and offered her a cup of tea. Blanca smiled and thanked Chloe as she took the small cup. "This tea has special herbs in it. It should help you feel a bit stronger." Chloe informed her. Senel noticed what she said and ran to the kitchen. "Chloe! You used THOSE herbs?" Senel yelled from downstairs, "I was saving those..." Will walked up to Blanca and asked, "Do you think you can tell us what happened to you downstairs?" Blanca nodded while she faintly said, 'yes'.

"So, what exactly happened to you, Blanca?" Shirley asked, "You look like you've taken a lot of damage, even with the healing eres we gave you." Blanca stayed silent for a moment, trying to gather all of the thoughts that she could remember. For some reason, her memories were in a jumble. "Uhm, well..." the white haired girl began, "I remember...Rem...And I told her...I wanted to go back...12 years. Then, after that, this big light swallowed me up, and I didn't even know where I was until you found me. I tried looking for Rem at your Altar of the Sea, but she didn't seem to be there..." Jay scratched his chin while he thought. "So that would mean you came back from 12 years in the future, correct?" At this, everyone turned to Jay, a surprised and puzzled look crossing their faces. "Twel-Twelve years!" Harriet asked, "Wow! I'd be as old as Moses then!" Moses stuck his tongue out at Harriet and said, "I ain't that old..." Will gave Moses the 'Now you know how I feel' look, and then asked Jay, "Isn't it physically impossible for a mere human to travel through time, added on the amount of time she traveled..?" Blanca turned her head toward Will and commented, "Not for an iron eren it's not. If I traveled 12 years into the past, then anyone should." Blanca took a sip of the herb tea that Chloe had made, obviously enjoying it. "Ah, I had a feeling you were an eren when I saw that sword you were wielding. If I may ask, what kind is it?" Chloe inquired. Blanca stood up and limped toward the place where the sword had been placed. She took it out of the sheath and showed Chloe and the others.

"It's an Angel's Tear sword. I think I had gotten it from my mother, but I'm not sure..." Chloe took a look at the magnificent blade. It looked so similar to the one she had wielded long ago, but...It couldn't possibly be the same. As Chloe put the sword down, she told Blanca, "Well, if you're up to it soon, we can have a little duel if you'd like." When that was said, Blanca's face lit up with happiness. "R-Really? You'd duel me?" Chloe nodded and smiled as they both sat back down at the table. When all was silent, Norma thought it was the perfect opportunity. "Okay, Blanca! From now on, you're gonna be 'Whitey', alright?" Blanca, with a confused look asked, "Why are you giving me a nickname..?" Jay gave her a light pat on the head and replied, "Stupidity, that's why." Norma heard this and was obviously angry. "What! I'm not stupid! Red's the one that needs medical attention!" From there on, Moses and Norma had another one of their squabbles. Shirley added, "Those two really look like they'd make a good couple. They're complete opposites." Everyone smiled, except for Moses and Norma, who blushed and both yelled angrily, "No, we don't!" Everyone laughed at this comment. Harriet sighed. She was tired of this 'Adult-Talk' that she'd always heard. Just then, Blanca turned her head toward Harriet at the table.

"Um...Harriet, right? Is anything wrong..?" Harriet nodded slightly and responded,

"Well, I'm a bit bored. Those guys always talk about this kind of stuff, and it gets kind of repetitive once it's been a while..." Blanca smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I don't understand this once they get into complicated things." Just then, Harriet got an idea. She pulled at her father's sleeve from across the table and nagged. "Dad, can Blanca and I go outside for a bit?" Will turned to Harriet and patted her on the head. "Fine, but don't go too far on your own." Harriet shrugged as she walked out. "Don't be so worried. We're only going in the yard." She left the door opened, as Blanca followed and closed it.

"We're still on the Legacy, right, Harriet?" Blanca asked Harriet as she closed the door. Harriet sat down and responded, "Yeah. If we weren't on the Legacy, the clouds wouldn't be moving so fast!" Blanca lay down on the grass next to where Harriet was sitting. "Wow...the Clouds do move fast around here...I guess the Legacy's moving fast." Harriet looked up at the sky and felt the sea breeze flow right through her. The sun was beginning to set, and both girls watched the sunset make its decent into the ocean. "How long have you been on the

Legacy, Harriet?" Blanca asked, breaking the silence of the once-glowing sunset. "Hmm...Let's see...I think it's been seven months now...close to a year. It's kind of hard to believe, time went so quickly. How about you?" Blanca sat up from the grass and said with a quiet tone, "I'm pretty sure I was on the Legacy my whole life. I forget how long my parents were there for, but they met here, and they were married here, too."

"Ah, that's neat. My parents ran away to the Legacy, but when my Dad brought my Mom here, she was sick to begin with, and after I was born, it went downhill since. When my mother died, I lived with my grandparents who hated my father, and he never visited me, either. Eventually, I began to hate my father, too. Soon after I came on the Legacy, I had found out that my father had named a flower after me and made a room for me if I ever came on the Legacy..." Tears stared to well in Harriet's eyes as she kept going. "Wow...That was awfully nice of your father to do that for you. My parents really don't do anything special. At least, nothing that I can remember. I just...Still can't believe that I lost almost all of my memory of them...I don't even remember what they look like." Blanca began to stand up, and Harriet followed. "I'm sure you'll get your memory back. Until then, would you like to be friends? We've got a lot in common!" Blanca smiled and turned to Harriet. "I'd like that very much. Anyways, it's getting kind of dark. Let's head in." Harriet nodded, and the two were inside the warm home, everyone still talking.

"I hope you all changed the subject." Harriet commented. Norma, now with several bite marks, got up from her chair and said, "Well, of course we did! Mr. Caveman here almost became a cannibal. Blanca's eyes widened and she walked up toward Moses. "I'm assuming you're the caveman?" Moses nodded, and before he had a chance to say anything, Blanca slapped him upside the head. "Stupid caveman! You should think before going cannibal!" Everyone turned and stared at Blanca. "Ah, sorry. I--" Before she finished, Jay cut in and said, "Don't worry. People like you are useful when you're trying to hurt a stupid bandit." Blanca just stood and tilted her head at Jay. "Oh, so...It's useful?" Everyone else shook their heads, but Blanca just chuckled.

"Ah, my. It's getting rather late. I'd best be going. Senel, Chloe, good night." Will said, and as soon as he had said that, both he and Harriet left the house. "Yeah, it is kinda late. Bubbles, Jay, we should go home, too." The two agreed and they were off. Someone in the house heard something like, "Whitey, don't end up like JJ!" Shirley, who remained, gave Blanca a pat on the head and said, "Bye bye, Whitey! See you later, and be good for these two!" Now, only Senel, Chloe and Blanca remained in the small house. "Uhm, Where will I sleep?" Senel looked around the house. Where WAS she going to sleep? Chloe pointed to the couch, where she would sleep. "Well, you can always sleep on the couch. Coolidge has an old cot that I could use. Right?" Senel nodded, but the cot was old. He didn't really like it, anyway. "Chloe, you sleep on the bed. Blanca can sleep on the couch." Chloe tilted her head. "What about you?" Senel shook his head and said, "Don't worry. I'll just sleep on the floor upstairs. I've got some cushions that'll be more comfortable than cot." Chloe gave a slight blush and thanked Senel. "We'll switch off if you'd like, Senel. I won't mind." Senel smiled and nodded, and the two were off to bed. Before Chloe hit the hay, she gave Blanca a small box. "You can have these, since those are the only clothes you have right now," Chloe said as she handed the box to Blanca. When she opened it up, it contained a pair of blue pajamas with small, yellow stars on them. Blanca's eyes beamed with happiness. "Wow! They're wonderful! Thank you so much, Miss Chloe!" Chloe smiled. She had never seen a ten-year-old girl be so surprised about a pair of pajamas. But for some reason, she had felt like she had known Blanca for years..

"Well, good night, you two. Thanks again for the pajamas, Miss Chloe!" The young girl said while she made herself comfortable on the couch. "Good night, Blanca." Senel and Chloe both said at once. Was this what it was like taking care of a child? In some ways to Senel, it didn't seem so bad. Although a girl like Blanca was shy, so she was quiet for most of the time. As Senel fell asleep, he had dreamed about times past, but he also dreamed about the day, and what may await him in his ever-going future.

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_"Am I an aunt yet?"_

_"No, not yet. Be patient."_

_"I can't wait! I hope she's cute."_

_Blanca was in a dream. She had heard people talking from the inside of the house. It was getting very cold, so she decided to quietly open the door and see what was going on. As she entered the house, four people waited on a small couch. They were people alright, but Blanca couldn't exactly tell who they were or what exactly they looked like. She tried tapping the shoulder of one of the men sitting there with his child in his arms. "Um...Excuse me, sir..?" The man did not budge, nor did he say anything. All he did was pat his child on the head and say, "See that, Hunter? You'll have a new friend to play with soon." Blanca backed up as soon as she heard that. Hunter...Why was that name so familiar to her? Was it important at all? In a moment's notice, the sound of crying was heard, most likely from a baby. The sounds were louder as she went up the stairs, only to find a young couple. 'The man and woman there must be the parents.' Blanca thought. More footsteps were heard as two of the women downstairs made their way up._

_"Wow! I'm an aunt, I'm an aunt!" The shorter haired woman shrieked with joy. An older man came up the stairs and bonked the shorter haired girl on the head. "Quiet down, you're going to make the baby cry even harder," He scolded. The shorter haired girl apologized and pointed to the newborn. "So, what's her name?" The new mother and father looked out the window. It had started to snow very hard, and everything was turning white. The man snapped his fingers and announced, "How about Blanca?" At this, Blanca backed away in shock. "Mama? Papa? Is it really you..?" Not hearing the comment, the woman smiled at the name and nodded. "I like it. It's the perfect name for her. It would match even more if she had white hair. But, only time will tell." Blanca heard this and ran to the young couple. "Mama! Papa! Why don't you see me? Why am I seeing you here! Tell me, someone!" Just then, a white light and a banging sound passed into her ears and she sprung up from the couch, tears rolling down her eyes._

"Mama...Papa..?" She whispered, trying not to wake anyone up. It was early in the morning, and the Sun had risen back from the ocean. "Maybe I'll make everyone some breakfast. I should feel better then." Blanca said to herself.

Chloe woke up minutes later. She could smell breakfast being cooked, but she felt too tired to open her eyes yet. Before she could, though, she heard someone breathing near her. Her eyes quickly darted open, and to her surprise, she must have fallen out of the bed without noticing! She quietly got up, her face a bright red, and tiptoed down the stairs, careful not to wake Senel. To her surprise, Blanca was already dressed and ready for adventure. "Blanca..? Why are you up so early?" The knight asked.

"Oh, hello, Miss Chloe. Well, um..."My Mama always used to wake me up at 6 in the morning on days like these sometimes so we could train early in the morning, and then I'd go to school." Chloe had no idea that a school would be in Werites Beacon. "School? Where are you taught?" Blanca ran toward a window and pointed down the western road. "Well, the kids are taught in the Sheriff's house. Apparently, he had been on a lot of adventures before I was even born. Although he had known my parents, so the lessons were free...Wow! I remembered it, Miss Chloe! I remembered! Maybe I can remember even more today!" Chloe smiled and sat down at the table as Blanca put three plates on it piled with hotcakes. Soon after, she marched up the stairs and yelled, "Hey, Mr. Senel! It's breakfast! Wake up, please!" Senel slowly opened his eyes, drowsy and weak from waking up. "Oh...Oh, okay..." The Marine grumbled when he dragged himself down the stairs.

"Miss Chloe, is Mr. Senel a morning person?" Chloe laughed and shook her head. "At first, I thought he was, but he's nothing of the sort. Usually I wake him up every day."

Senel dragged a chair from the table, sat on it, and started to eat the hotcakes. "How do

they taste?" Blanca asked, obviously eager to hear the answer. Senel just nodded. A smile crossed Blanca's lips, and she started to eat. While eating, she remembered that she had wanted to talk with Rem. "Oh, um...Would it be alright if we go to the Altar of the Sea again..? I needed to talk to Rem about something." Senel and Chloe tilted their heads, and Senel asked, "How come?"

"Well, I need to talk to Rem because she's the one that took me 12 years in the past. I thought maybe if I talked to her, I would be able to go back and see my family again. Although...I don't even know why I left, so hopefully Rem should know." Chloe nodded in agreement. "That sounds like a reasonable idea. I can go get the others later to tell them what our plans are." Blanca smiled and nodded. "Thanks! I'll go with you, too. Mr. Senel, are you going?" Senel, still drowsy, but less than he was said, "Sure. We should help our friends."

"Thank you, you two!" I guess I should head out and tell the others. See you in a bit!" After that was said, Blanca put her plate in the sink and sped out the door. Senel and Chloe stared quizzically at each other. "Didn't we say we'd go?" Senel shook his head and said, "Well, at least it gives us time to eat." Chloe smiled at this, and the two waited for everyone to come to Senel's house yet again.

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Yay! It's here! Tell me how you liked it, okay? If I get maybe…2 reviews, I'll upload the next chapter. (Or I'll just randomly upload it because it's fun…) I hope you enjoyed it, and...Uhh…I guess I'm off! dashes off to a magical world


	3. Chapter 2

Whoa! I got like…150 hits! That's pretty cool…I don't think I've gotten that many hits before. Anyways, someone reviewed saying they wanted the format to be a bit different, so I changed it in the middle of the chapter. I hope that makes up for it, and I'll make sure to format it that way from now on. Thanks, and Enjoy!

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CHAPTER TWO:

About twenty minutes after leaving the house, Blanca had returned with the 5 members of the team. Everyone gathered and sat at the table while waiting for instructions. It was Senel's turn to explain. "Alright, everyone. Blanca came up with a plan to try to find her memory. She wants to go to go back to the Altar of the Sea to talk to Rem." Norma stood up and made somewhat of a complaint. "So we're going to have to climb ALL THE WAY back up there? It'll take way too long!" When hearing that, Will, who was conveniently sitting next to her for obvious purposes, bonked her upside the head. "Ow! Teach, you're mean! Can't you hit a poor, innocent girl a little lighter at the least?" Will confidently shook his head. Blanca laughed. Jay, who was sitting next to her, raised his hand and stated a comment. "I'm not sure if that trip would even be necessary. Even if we went there, would Rem even know who Blanca was? She traveled over a decade into the past."

Blanca banged her fist on the table and protested, "Rem has to know me! I used to come to the Altar every day with my friend! Could we at least try? Please. I'll help you fight!" Everyone took a moment to think. Shirley spoke up by saying, "We can't just abandon her. She's trying desperately to find her way home. We should at least try to fight alongside Whitey." Moses got up and nodded. "If it's for findin' your family, I'm with 'er." Moses then sat back down and waited for the answer. After some debate, everyone decided to go. What else could they do? "Thank you, everyone. It means a lot to me..." Blanca gave everyone a slight bow and walked up to the door. Norma marched cheerfully through the door and called out, "C'mon, everyone! The Fun Bunch is going on another awesome adventure!" As Norma and Blanca marched through to the main gate, everyone followed behind, eager for the results of their new adventure.

The Altar of the Sea soon came into the view of the party. Everything stood the same as the other day. Upon reaching the entrance, Jay asked Blanca a question. "Well, since you're from the future, I'm sure not everything's the same, so I'd like to take this opportunity to ask you about the Summon Spirits. Do you know where they all reside where you live?" Blanca nodded while stopping in her tracks. "Yes. Rem is on the top of the Altar, Volt resides in the Quiet Lands, Celcius should reside in town, Gnome lives around the Oresoren village, but...I'm not too sure about Shadow and Efreet." Jay thought to himself and sighed. "That should be fine for now. I can try to gather as much information as possible on where the other two should be." When that was said, everyone entered the inside of the Altar, cautiously and anxiously.

Walking through the Altar was indeed a dangerous place way back when, but the number of monsters had calmed since the defeat of Schwartz, similar to the power they had possessed. Everything was calm, but it wasn't a normal calm. It was more of an eerie calm, as the only sounds that were head were the footsteps and the small waterfalls. Blanca, even though seeing this before, had lingering questions about the altar. She was taught that it was the place where the Rite of Accession was held on the Legacy, but could it hold more power if it took her to this time?

Norma couldn't take the silence. She wanted to say something, but a roar from a large, silver dragon took her words. "Everyone, get into positions!" Will yelled. Everyone, except for Blanca got into their so-called 'positions', and prepared for battle. She had decided to just follow Chloe, since the two of them had similar fighting tactics.

As the dragon closed in on Moses, he quickly threw one of his spears toward the nape of the beat's long, silver neck. Success. When stabbed, blood soon poured out of the dragon's neck, weakening it, but not fully destroying it. "Shooting Stars!" Shirley chanted. In no less than a second, about twenty cobalt stars sped towards the dragon, beating the beast with ice cold scratches to freeze it. To finish the dragon off, Senel, Chloe, Will, and Norma froze time and gave the dragon a quick and painless Climax Combo. When time had started to tick again, the dragon had fallen down to the ground. It was dead, or so the party had thought. Now that everything was taken care of, Norma could finally speak. "Whitey, what the heck were you doing? You're not supposed to just run around when you're in the middle of a fight! You...well, you fight!"

"I know! I just...didn't really know what to do. I've never seen anything THAT big before..." Norma shook her head and said to herself, "Excuses, excuses." Senel had overheard Norma's comment and commented back. "Norma, you aren't really one to talk." He continued to walk on, everyone behind him, until Shirley noticed a light coming from the top of the path the party was on. "Look! It looks like we're almost at the top!" When that was said, everyone nodded and ran on to the top of the Altar, destroying any monster that came into their path. Before Blanca could catch up, she looked down the trails at the dead dragon. She'd known it was dead, but she could never be sure. To prove herself, she started walking towards the path of the dead dragon until Shirley called her name. "Whitey! Come on! We're waiting for you!" The white haired girl soon turned around and dashed as fast as she could while making it to the top of the Altar.

Shirley waited at the entrance to the top of the Altar. She smiled when she saw Blanca come out from the cave-like place. "There you are, little IrelQues. Come on, everyone's waiting!" Blanca paused and tilted her head. "Um...Miss Shirley? What does IrelQues mean?"Shirley took Blanca's hand as she started running to the top, Blanca trailing right behind. Shirley turned her head while running and simply replied, "White Wings. It's Relares for White Wings." Blanca smiled and nodded as she let go of Shirley's hand, her mind now cleared up, and she ran to the top of the Altar with Shirley, a sea breeze blowing as they did so.

Everyone waited at the top for Blanca and Shirley, eagerly awaiting them. As they made their final ascent to the last staircase, Blanca now knew where she was. Quickly, she ran up the stairs and took a look at the view. "Wow! I remember this place now! I used to come up here with my best friend all the time!" Although happy, Blanca still worried if this was where Rem was going to be. As the party made their ascent up the curved staircase of the Altar, Blanca stood, her head constantly moving as if she were looking for something. Jay looked around, as well. "Well? Where is Rem usually where you live?" Blanca pointed to the bunch of flowers. "Right there, at least. I think so..." Everyone walked up to the flower patch, assured that was where Rem had to have been, as that's where the Rem of the present was. Blanca walked up to the patch of flowers last, somewhat anxious.

"Um...Rem? Can you hear me? It's Blanca. Do you...Remember me?" Blanca soon knelt down and prayed on her knees. Eyes closed, she focused on the reason why she wanted Rem to awaken from her slumber. It was successful. When she stood up, a small, gold-colored light appeared from the flowers. Naturally, everyone let out a small gasp, staring in awe at the beauty of the scene. Moments later, Rem had risen from her sleep, looking calm, but happy at the same time. Everyone felt a warm aura from the Summon Spirit, knowing that it only existed because of the power that Grune had given it. Blanca, unfortunately, didn't even know Rem's history.

When Rem had fully awakened, she slowly opened her eyes, and her wings began to glow the same gold color as the light before it. She looked at Blanca and immediately noticed who she was. "Ah...Child of the Future...What brings you here?" The little swordsman smiled at Rem, happy that her identity was remembered. "Well...I've been trying to get back home...12 years from now, but I can't seem to find any way home, and my memory from then vanished as I did when I left." Rem nodded at the small girl, understanding what had happened and nodded. "Ah, I see. Well...You may not be able to return to your time unless the Summon Spirit Treasures have been returned to us. You see, when you traveled here, the source of my power, the Spectral Lotus, disappeared from my sight, and I can no longer use great amounts of power at once without it. I'm positive that the other Summon Spirits have lost their treasures as well."

When Chloe heard this, she walked toward the patch of flowers where Rem hovered over and looked up at the being. "Would your treasures be within a close range?" Rem nodded. "Yes. My Lotus should be floating in the water somewhere in this holy place, but if you search for it, you must be cautious. Monsters may lurk around every corner, as they see you as people trying to steal it. They just don't understand complicated things like this, I suppose." Norma then jumped and cheered. "Alright! So all we have to do is find the Lotus without getting killed? Piece of cake!" When Blanca heard this, she became somewhat frightened by the words 'without getting killed'. "What do you mean, piece of cake! We'll have to take a boat to get to where the Lotus is if it's in the water." At that, Chloe turned pale. "W-wait. We have to take a boat!" Blanca turned around at Chloe and smiled. "Don't worry! When my Mama went on my Papa's boat, she kept saying, 'It's alright. Stay calm. Deep breaths.' Maybe that'll work for you." Chloe, surprised at Blanca's response, yelled back, "I-I don't need that! It's not like I'm afraid of water or anything!" Everyone backed up. Senel was going to say something to change the subject, but Rem, still watching, decided to instead. She laughed at the young knight. "Please, do not worry. I'm sure one of your party can just swim there. It shouldn't be that deep. I wish you all the best of luck." With that, the Summon Spirit smiled and disappeared in the same golden light that she had appeared in.

"So, I guess we're goin' on a little hunt?" Moses asked the party. Everyone nodded in unison, and everyone ran down the stairs to the exit of the top Altar, with hopes high from everyone. On the way down, large booms were heard from under the party's feet. Blanca gasped. "D-do you think it could be that dragon?" Jay scratched his chin while he walked, obviously in deep thought. "Possibly, although the odds are kind of slim. When we had finished with it, it didn't even move at all. Unless that stupid bandit behind you just helped the dragon play dead." Moses grew angry at the comment like he usually did, but he knew Jay did it out of spite. "Y'know...I'm not even gonna say anythin' to ya." Jay shrugged and said, "Rather mature of you, Moses, ignoring that kind of comment." Again, Moses blew off the comment and kept walking. Turning around, Blanca noticed no footstep sounds in front of them. She took a look and gasped. "H-Hey! Where is everyone! Are we lost, Jay?" Only Jay, Moses, and Blanca remained. "Hmm...I suppose everyone must have taken a wrong turn. We can try to make the best out of things by not trying to find them. That way, we can cover more ground looking."

"Okay," Blanca said anxiously, "But what about the others? How will we know where they are?" Moses patted Blanca on the head and said, "Now don't you worry! We've got out hearts! They'll lead the way back to our family!" Blanca looked at the bandit quizzically. "Really?" Moses nodded and told her about how the group had become a family in their journeys. Jay, on the other hand, kept a look out for the Spectral Lotus while Moses told his story.

"Wow! That's a really neat story! Is it true, Jay?" Blanca turned to Jay and anticipated the answer. "Yes, it's all true. Except for the part where Moses talked Senel into getting his sacred eres. That, if I'm not mistaken, was Chloe." The little girl nodded and commented, "Chloe, huh..? She must care for Senel a lot." Moses jumped and nodded, "You bet! Y'know, this one time, those two went on a date, and Bubbles and I--" Before Moses could say anything else, Jay yelled, "Look out!" The bandit and the swordsgirl dodged the coming ambush, and noticed right away that it was the dragon that had ambushed the party once more. "Ahh! I knew that thing was still alive!" Blanca pointed at the monster, and it aimed its mouth right at her. Frozen with fear, Blanca could do nothing to talk or yell, and she couldn't reach her sword, either. She felt a large lump in her throat that she couldn't seem to keep down. All the girl could do was try to utter a cry for help as much as she could. She quickly closed her eyes as the dragon's head lunged forth toward her.

At that moment, she felt herself being lifted up by something. She slowly opened her eyes to find that she was in Jay's arms. Jay noticed that her eyes were now opened and said, "I'm going to put you down. When I do, I'm going to distract the dragon. Try to get the nape of its neck like Moses did, alright?" Blanca nodded and gave the signal to be dropped down. As soon as he could, Jay took out a dagger and threw it at the enraged beast. It soon decided to chase after Jay. Moses, unaware of the plan, threw a sharp spear in the dragon's hind quarters. At this, the dragon grew even more furious than before, and charged at Moses. Jay cursed to himself, "Augh, that stupid bandit!" Before Blanca could get onto the animal's back, she noticed that Moses was in dire trouble. As quickly as possible, she got in front of Moses and chanted. When all was ready, she yelled, "Holy Wall!" At that moment, a wall of rainbow colors enveloped Moses, Blanca, and Jay. The dragon lunged forward this time, but only a scratch was made on Moses's skin, "Yeehaw!" Moses cheered, "I'm invincible!" He soon jumped on to the dragon's back and stabbed it in the neck with the last spear he had, still feeling 'invincible'. Seconds later, Blanca joined in the fray and was able to get onto the dragon's back. She, as well, stabbed into the dragon's hard scales, spewing out blood from both the back and neck.

Jay finished the battle with one last throwing Kunai, and it was a direct hit in the heart of the dragon. The beast soon unbalanced itself and fell down, this time, dead for sure. As the dragon fell, so did the protective barriers around Jay, Moses, and Blanca. When the barriers were fully faded, Moses put a hand on his forehead. "Augh, I feel awful. What the heck didja do to us, Blanca!" Blanca sighed and apologized to Moses. "Sorry about that, Mr. Moses. I forget how or why I learned it, but sometimes it takes a bit too much energy from the targets. I haven't truly mastered it yet...But you should be feeling better in a few minutes!"

Jay lifted himself from up off of the ground, still in a bit of pain. He noticed a small light from the nearby body of water around him and the two, and he pointed to it as he came to. "What's that light over there?" Jay asked shortly after he pointed to the light. "Y'sure you're not dyin' on us, Jay?" Blanca gasped and became furious. "D-Don't say things like that!" She ran up to the water, affirming that there was indeed a light in it. She pointed to Moses and ordered, "Do you think you can get it?" Moses pointed to himself, "ME! Why me? Why not Jay?"

"Because Jay's still recovering from his wounds. He did a lot more battle than you, y'know." Blanca added in, trying to defend Jay. When she looked at Moses again, his expression didn't change. The only thing Blanca could do now was fight him to do this task. She unsheathed her Angel's Tear and began to charge toward Moses. As she did, Moses noticed the white blur charge at full speed.

"Fine, fine, I'll do it!" Moses complained. When he had said this, Blanca stopped in her tracks, just missing her swing at the bandit. She almost tripped, but stood her ground and calmly said, "That's good. For a second there, I thought I'd have to swing at you!" Moses ignored the comment, and walked up to the shining pool. He knelt down and poked the water to see if it was the right temperature. Jay, who was almost fully healed from the Gel he had popped into his mouth, ran up to Moses and kicked him so that he fell into the water. It worked, and Moses fell into the small pool of water.

"Wow. You think it's deep in there, Jay?" Blanca asked.

"No, I'm sure he'll be up in a few seconds."

"What if he got eaten..?"

"Then we leave."

"Oh...Okay..."

Much to Jay's discouragement, Moses appeared seconds later, the Spectral Lotus in hand. "Yeehaw! I found it, gang! Let me up 'ere, will ya?" The two did as they were told and dragged Moses up to the floor of the cave. The bandit then gave Blanca the Spectral Lotus, and headed towards Jay, fuming.

"What did ya'll think you were doin', kickin' me in the water like that! You coulda killed me, y'hear!" Jay yawned sarcastically, trying to ignore Moses's little speech. Moses then grew furious. He began to say something, but was interrupted by a large klunk on the head.

"Mr. Will! Everyone! How did you all find us?" Blanca cheered as she turned around, seeing everyone else that Moses, Jay and herself lost.

"Well...Actually, we were heading to the top. We didn't notice that all of you were gone until recently." At this, Moses grew furious, but kept the rage to himself this time. He wasn't going to risk being kicked in the water again. Shirley soon noticed the Spectral Lotus that lay in Blanca's hands soon after they were on their way to the top.

"Whitey, when did you find the Spectral Lotus? We looked all over and couldn't find it!" Blanca put her hand on the Lotus, feeling a warm aura surrounding her. She felt calm when she touched it, but soon took her hand off of it when Shirley called her name. "Ah, well, we fought a dragon, and then Mr. Jay saw a light in the water, so Mr. Moses got it for us!" Shirley smiled, looking at the still dripping bandit. "Really?"

"That story's not exactly true," Jay began, "I had to kick that coward in before he made us die waiting." At that, Will bonked both Jay and Moses's head, aware of the senseless fight. "H-hey! What'd you do that for!"

"Instinct. When you're with two people who constantly fight, you know when to stop it as soon as it starts if you're with them too long." Both Jay and Moses sighed, and the group continued on their way. Norma, who finally had the chance to break the silence with no interruption of a dragon, decided to say something.

"So, guys...Are we there yet?"

"Do you think we're there if we're still walking?" Chloe asked her.

"Well, actually...I think we're back to the top!" Shirley commented.

Everyone sighed in relief at what Shirley had said. The group had finally made it to the entrance to the top once again, and everyone ran when they saw it. They were tired of searching the place, and they were going to be glad to finally get out. When everyone reached the top once again, they headed for the small flower patch, and Blanca kneeled down on her knees and prayed, with the Spectral Lotus in hand.

"Rem, we're back with your Lotus." Blanca whispered as she prayed to the bunch of flowers. Once again, the faint light of gold appeared, followed by Rem, who had arisen once again from her slumber. She looked at the young girl holding the Spectral Lotus and smiled.

"Ah...So you have found it. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. May I be of any assistance to you after your kind deed, young lady?"

Blanca stood up from where she was kneeling and requested a favor, as well. "Like I've said before, I've been trying to get home. You said that the Summon Spirit Treasures were missing from all of the Summon Sprits, right?" Rem nodded to the girl, and Blanca continued to explain. "So...If we get the other Summon Sprit Treasures, you'll be able to send me back home with my memories intact?"

"Yes. But only if you can find your memories."

"Find?" Senel asked, "I thought they would just come back to her."

Rem shook her head. "No, that is incorrect. If she has regained any memories, it's only because she may have gone somewhere that was important to her in the past." Senel thought for a moment and took in Rem's words. If Blanca had already started regaining her memory, and had only been to his house and this Altar, why was she gaining it so fast? Were they really places of true importance to her?

"Well...Can you at least tell us where I can find another part of my memory, Rem?" Blanca asked. Rem took to the skies when she heard this, and pointed to the place where Werites Beacon was barely visible.

"Home, child. Go to the place that you will call your home. That...Is all I can say.

I wish you the best of luck getting home, and do not worry. The other Summon Spirits can help you, as well." She then disappeared in a flash of golden light, and everyone turned to the main Altar. "Well, she was a goldmine of information!" Norma said sarcastically, "We don't even know where Whitey even lived!" Blanca stared at Norma and said, "Of course I know where I lived. It's not like I forgot that."

"Where did you live?" Chloe asked her.

"I lived in Werites Beacon, and then I remember leaving. It was this house near the middle of town. It was big enough for my family, and I had my own room. That's pretty much it."

"Oh! Then we can start looking tomorrow!" Shirley added a smile on her cheerful face. Blanca nodded and cheered, "Yeah! But can we go home now? I'm tired..." Everyone nodded and agreed. After searching through a large place like the Altar, you're bound to be tired.

"So, off to town, then?" Will inquired. Everyone did their group nod, and they all headed for town, with empty stomachs and tired spirits.

As the party made it toward town, clouds covered the silhouette of the sky. Nothing could be seen for miles but darkened clouds, perhaps containing rain. Everyone looked at the sky, their hopes of a small picnic slowly fading when clouds covered more and more of the sky. Chloe suggested, "We should probably get inside soon. We'll be drenched by the time we get inside if we don't."

"Yeah," Senel began, "I guess this is where we'll split up until tomorrow?"

"It would seem so. Everyone, rest up. We've got a whole new adventure for us tomorrow." Will added.

Everyone said their goodbyes and began to run home as the winds picked up. Senel, Chloe, and Blanca quickly ran to their home when it started drizzling, and soon pouring. To their luck, it wasn't pouring until the three made it to Senel's house. Blanca looked around and headed for the kitchen. "Mr. Senel, do you have anything to eat? I'm kind of hungry..." Senel, who was also hungry, looked around his kitchen for anything that he had.

"No, I can't seem to find anything, and the weather's getting worse. I'm sure Beacon Breads would be closing up, too." Senel explained. Blanca sighed and began to walk towards the couch. As she sat, a bolt of lightning struck the Legacy, and loud thunder followed. "Aaah!" Chloe and Blanca yelled in unison. Senel was shocked. Not only was Chloe afraid of the lightning, but Blanca, as well.

"Don't worry; it's only thunder and lightning." Senel commented.

"Yeah, but it's scary...I'm afraid of things like that..." Blanca said in a frightened tone. Her face was completely pale when Chloe noticed her. She must have had a larger fear of thunder than Chloe had of lightning.

"I-I think I'm going to go to bed. My Mama always told me that the rain would be gone in the morning..." Blanca murmured. Chloe had overheard what she was saying and asked if she'd like to be tucked in. "R-really? You'd do that, Miss Chloe?"

"Of course. It always made me feel safer when my mother tucked me in, so I'm sure you'll feel the same way." Blanca smiled and ran upstairs to change into her pajamas after she had heard this. When she finished, she hopped onto the couch which Senel had covered with a large quilt. Blanca quickly got under the covers and snuggled into them. Chloe had thought it was quite amusing. It reminded her of her childhood when her mother and father would kiss her goodnight when she was very young.

"Thank you for doing this for me, Miss Chloe. It's very kind of you." Blanca said.

She yawned soon after, tired from her adventures with the others. Chloe sat down on the part of the couch where Blanca wasn't.

"Don't worry. I just hope this will make you feel a little better. If thunder does scare you that much, then just remember: It'll be gone in the morning, and if not, then you can tell it to go away. That, I promise." At this, Blanca smiled, her eyes, for some reason, watery. "Thanks again, Miss Chloe. Good night."

"Good night, Blanca." Chloe smiled and stood up from the couch. She covered Blanca with some more of the quilt and turned around. Little did she know, Senel was right behind, watching the whole thing. "C-Coolidge! Shouldn't you be upstairs?"

"Well, I was," Senel began, "But I didn't know you could be so motherly, that's all.

Anyway, you can sleep on the bed again tonight, and I'll sleep on the cushions. G'night, Chloe." Chloe blushed, but was able to say, "Good night, Coolidge." She, too, walked upstairs to the bedroom and lie down on the bed. 'Am I really...Motherly...?' she thought. Soon, her thoughts of the day brought her to sleep. The same happened for the others, as well.

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A bolt of lightning hit, followed by a crash of ear-piercing thunder.

"Waaaahh! Ma-Mama! It's scawy!" a small girl, perhaps the age of 1 or 2 cried to her mother. Blanca closely watched the small girl. Could it have been herself? A young woman soon walked up to the girl and wrapped her up in blankets, covering everything but her face and ears.

"Sshhh..." The mother said, "Everything will be alright. How about I sing you a lullaby?" The young girl nodded, and the woman began to sing a song familiar to Blanca.

"Little Child, be not afraid

The rain pounds harsh against the glass

Like an unwanted stranger

There is no danger

I am here tonight.

Little child, be not afraid

Though thunder explodes

And lightning harsh

Illuminates your tearstained face

I am here tonight

And someday you'll know

That nature is so...

For you know, once even I

Was a little child

And I was afraid

But a certain someone came

To dry all of my tears

Trade sweet sleep the tears

And give a kiss goodnight..."

The child was asleep. Everything, even the rain, had calmed, and the mother, with her calmed face, put the small child in her crib, with hopeful dreams of the future. Blanca's eyes opened wide. She had remembered that song was the same song that her mother would sing to her on a stormy night, and when she couldn't fall asleep. Her ghostly figure walked up to the small child and the mother, and her eyes filled with tears.

"Mama...This is me, right? Are you trying to tell me something..? Please, Mama...I want to go home. I miss you so much, and Papa, too..."

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A white light then flashed toward Blanca, and her face felt wet. She soon opened her eyes to see that she had left the house, and was covered with rain. It was still pouring, but she found herself standing in the rain of the front yard of Senel's home. She looked up in the clouds; eyes filled with the same tears, and looked back to the house. She headed in, with a dampened face, and a dampened spirit.

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Wow. That was a long chapter, but I think it's my favorite so far. The song that Blanca's mother sang was 'Lullaby for a Stormy Night' by Vienna Teng. I had to cut it short, because I didn't want it taking too much of the flashback. Anyways, please review! It'd make me really happy!


	4. Chapter 3

Yay! It's done! (Well, actually, it had been done for a week, but I'd been too lazy to post it.) Oh, well. Guess you can all sit back and enjoy reading chapter 3, right? Oh, and those of you that are already taking guesses about who Blanca actually is, well…In the words of Raine Sage: "You may be right, but you may be wrong." Have fun reading!

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CHAPTER THREE

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The next morning, just like Chloe had said, the rain had completely stopped, and all signs of it were gone with it. The sun was shining, and the weather seemed almost perfect. Blanca, who had woken up later than usual, came to find both Chloe and Senel in the kitchen. She quickly rubbed her eyes and ran to the table. She hated missing breakfast! "Is breakfast ready?" She asked Senel.

"Almost." The marine said in a tired tone.

"Hmmm? You sound tired. How come you woke up so early? Miss Chloe says you're a late sleeper."

Senel shook his head and, still groggy, said, "Well...I would've been up later, but Chloe dragged me to Beacon Breads." Chloe, who was cooking breakfast, turned around. She'd known that the story was a bit stretched.

"What do you mean 'dragged'? I did nothing of the sort. I'm just trying to get you to wake up early, being who you are." At that, Blanca laughed. The little quarrels the two had reminded her of her Mama and Papa, although their conversations were a little bit different. Reminding herself of her parents, Blanca had remembered what had happened to her this passing night. She decided to tell the two.

"You see...I had another dream about my memories. But this time, only two people were in it, and I'm pretty sure it was my Mama and me. She was singing me a lullaby in the stormy weather, and it made me fall asleep. I was very small then, though. But...When I woke up, I woke up in the middle of the rain in your front yard, Mr. Senel!" When Senel had heard this, it had seemed like he was waking up little by little as she told the story.

"Oh, I see," Chloe began. "That must've been why I had heard a door shut late at night. Did you catch a cold?" Blanca shook her head and told her that she was only out there for a few minutes when she had woken up. Senel thought for a moment. He remembered Rem's words. 'Home. Go to the place where you will call your home.' 'Maybe...Blanca's home is supposed to be here.' Senel thought, 'But...why my house?' He decided to speak up.

"Do you think you live in this house, Blanca?" Senel asked.

"Hmm...Maybe. The house in my dream looks similar to yours, but...Then that means you wouldn't live here anymore!" There was silence. Senel knew he didn't want to leave the Legacy, as he had found so many friends and adventures here. What would the future bring for him? Would he really have to leave? Silence then ensued for a few minutes. To break the silence, Chloe and Blanca set the table and put breakfast on the plates. When everything was ready, both Senel and Blanca stuffed their faces. They hadn't eaten since breakfast of the previous day!

"Despicable," Chloe said coldly. They both looked at her, slowly eating and taking her time. Blanca decided to do the same. She didn't want to feel sick, especially since her plans were already...well, planned! Her plans soon reminded her that she needed to tell the others. She remembered seeing Celsius at the Sheriff's house, so she decided they would stay in town and find Celsius's treasure. She then told Senel and Chloe of her plans to find this spirit's treasure.

"It would be easy, since Celsius is right in town." Chloe explained.

"Does that mean I can get the others?" Blanca asked.

"As long as it's alright with Coolidge."

Senel, who was still stuffing his face, paused and noded. He swallowed his food and said, "It's alright with me. Blanca can go get the others." Before he even finished, she was already out the door, and had decent clothes on! Chloe, who'd noticed that Senel had finished his food, told him that he should probably set a good example. Blanca's parents probably didn't want to find that their daughter had no table manners after coming home.

"I couldn't help it! It was good!" Senel argued. With that, Chloe felt blood rush to her cheeks, and she took the compliment. "Um...Thanks. Maybe you should take time to enjoy it, though..." She said to the marine. He reluctantly agreed, and soon after the two got ready, the 'Fun Bunch' had arrived.

"Blanca's already told us what we're doing. We need to go see Celsius and find her treasure, correct?" Jay asked. Blanca turned to him and nodded. Behind Jay was Harriet, who had snuck into the party without the approval of her father. She accidentally spoke up and complained, "Well, why don't we go already, then? It's getting late." Everyone turned to Harriet, and if you were quiet enough, you could have heard her say, "Oops." She quickly covered her mouth with her hands.

"Harriet, didn't I tell you to stay home?" Will asked in a stern voice.

"But Dad, you told me I could come on one of your adventures with you! This one's in town, so it's safe! Please...?"

Blanca turned to Will. She also wanted Harriet to come with the group. "Could she, Mr. Will? I'd love to have some company my age." Will, who wasn't very fond of the idea, reluctantly agreed. It had been some time since Harriet had made a friend besides one of the party. "Alright. But you need to stay in the back of us. That way, you'll be safer." Harriet sighed. Blanca saw her bit frustrated, but wanted to help her.

"Don't worry! If anything comes near you, I'll slash them! Okay?" Harriet smiled. She'd had a lot of friends before on the mainland, but never on the Legacy. She was glad she could finally have one, and an eren at that.

Norma came through and decided to give everybody a pep rally on the way out. She pulled a chair out from Senel's table and used it as a stair of sorts as she climbed and stood on the middle of the table. "Alright, everyone! Let's go! Charge!" She jumped up and rocketed her hand up to cheer, and surprisingly, the table didn't break. Senel let out a relieved sigh and walked out the door, along with everyone else, who also replied, "Charge!" when Norma jumped off of the table.

"Come on, we should head to my house. Celsius resides there, so her treasure should be around town." Will instructed. Everyone ran through the hustle and bustle of Werites Beacon in the morning. Men were heading to work, Moses's boys were running around like idiots (Much to Jay's expectations…), women were hanging laundry up to dry, and carts rolled by, selling all kinds of merchandise in them. Eventually, though, through the business of the morning, everyone made it to Will's home in one piece. The road that trailed off from the main road to the Sheriff's house was a little less crowded. That way, people wouldn't start some kind of riot when Celsius did appear.

Blanca looked around the front yard. She didn't see anything except for flowers and trees. She felt a presence similar to that of Rem's, but it made her feel...cold. "Umm...Where is Celsius, Mr. Will?" Blanca asked, "I don't see anything."

Will turned his head and pointed to the small garden with a giant, white flower in it. The white flower bloomed beautifully, but the other surrounding flowers in the garden were all covered with a light coating of snow. "She's in that flower over there. You need to touch it, but you need to be careful, because if you touch it with bare hands, you may get frozen."

"Then how are we s'posed to get Celcius to wake up?" Moses asked.

"We just need special gloves. I was able to make them after some experiments, but I only have one pair. Blanca can use them temporarily, but make sure to give them back. I only had enough materials to make one, and if those rip, then I'll have to go back to the mainland to get the material. I'll go get the gloves now," Will explained.

Everyone waited as Will rushed into his house to find the gloves. Shirley took a good look at the flower. It was large, alright, and a cold aura of ice was seen around it. She tried to see if the flower had a scent, but all she could feel was cold. She backed up from the flower, still admiring its beauty, and said, "Celsius has a nice place to live in. It's a very pretty flower."

Blanca shook her head and nodded. "Yeah, I guess she puts ice around the flower so no one can pick it. It's kind of pretty." Moments later, Will came out of his house, gloves in hand.

"Put these on," He told Blanca, "And touch the flower gently. If you do that, then Celcius should awaken." Blanca nodded as she put Will's gloves on, and she knelt down and poked the flower first, making sure the gloves were effective. When she was 100 percent sure they were working, the girl put both hands on the stem of the flower. Similar to Rem, a bright, cobalt blue light flashed from the icy flower, and Celsius rose out of it, checking her surroundings.

"Who goes there?" The Summon Spirit asked. Blanca looked up and saw the great being coldly staring at the party.

"M-My name is Blanca," The swordsgirl began, "I've come here to get back my memory and to go home, but I understand that you're missing your treasure, along with the other Summon Spirits." Celsius's eyes widened. She quickly grounded herself from midair and scratched her chin.

"You're going to be the one to find it?" Celsius asked.

"W-Well, my friends here are going to help me too, I-if that's alright..." Blanca stuttered. From personal experience, Rem was always kind to her, and she had known Rem for quite a while. This Summon Spirit was different. She never really talked to Celsius, mainly because she could never awaken the Spirit, as the flower in the garden could freeze you if you were unprotected. Her voice sounded cold, along with her personality, but Blanca knew the only way to return home was to talk to this great spirit of ice.

"Fine," The Summon Spirit replied, "Like the master always said, the more the merrier. My treasure is something called Celsius's Tear. It's a flower similar to that of which you have called me from. It should be in the high vallies along this city. Good luck." Celsius then dove back into the flower she was called from, and the icy flower soon began releasing its aura again.

"High vallies along this city..." Jay thought, "Do you think she means Fallingwater?"

"Most likely," Chloe replied, "What other valleys are there around here besides it?"

"Alright! Then, we're off!" Norma cheered. Moses joined in and chimed, "Yeehaw! This is gonna be good!" Everyone cheered, "Charge!" and ran through the business of the city all the way through Fallingwater.

At the path leading toward the hill, something didn't seem right to Norma. She felt...cold. Even with the lack of clothes she had in this climate, she'd never felt cold before. She decided to speak up to see if anyone felt the same way. "Is anyone feeling...Cold at all?" Moses turned to her and nodded.

"I do feel a bit chilly," Moses began, "But it's nothin' to worry about."

"Nothing to worry about!" Harriet yelled, "Look at the river!"

Harriet was right. The normally flowing water which came from Lumen Spring was completely frozen. Everything from the ponds to the monsters living there were frozen in their tracks. "Is this the power of Celsius's Tear? To freeze everything?" Jay asked himself.

The party slowly approached the steep, icy hills of Fallingwater, only to find that even more ice covered the land the farther and farther they had gone. Shirley took a look at one of the frozen waterfalls. When she touched it, a chill ran down her spine, and she quickly backed up. She thought for a moment and started chanting a spell. "Fire Ball!" She yelled. When the fire escaped from Shirley's Angelic Quill, everyone turned in the direction of the fire. It sped toward the waterfall of ice, and when it hit, the fire was able to melt the ice that had been weighing down the waterfall. "Hooray!" Harriet cheered. Before anyone else could cheer, though, the ice came back only seconds after the water began to flow normally.

"Aww...And I thought we'd be able to melt it, too..." Shirley sighed.

"Don't worry," Chloe began, "I'm sure when we pick that flower, everything will return to normal." Shirley nodded, and everyone resumed their walking through the icy Fallingwater.

Every passing moment, the roads grew icier and the party even colder. The party wasn't sure whether to retreat or keep going. As long as they kept walking, everyone knew everything would keep going as planned. Senel, who stayed in front, tried to keep everyone moving through the icy oasis. He looked at his surroundings to see where they had gone. Carefully walking so he didn't slip on ice, he climbed up a set of stairs and confirmed how far they had gone.

"We're more than halfway there, although it looks like there's some kind of snowstorm at Lumen Spring."

"Try to be safe, everyone!" Will yelled through the brisk winds. Everyone nodded and headed for the top, but as they climbed, winds grew ever colder, and soon, you couldn't see where you were going unless you memorized where you were. Blanca saw Harriet and Will in close range, so she stayed close to them until the storm cleared up. At the top of the hill, everything seemed to be white from snow. The ground looked fine to Harriet, so she decided to start running.

"Harriet, stop! You may slip on black ice!" Will called out to her. There was no answer. He called her name again, but still, no answer. Will began to run through the cold of the blizzard at the top and headed for the straight path to Lumen Spring. Blanca was then forgotten, and left behind. She didn't know where she was going at all, so she tried calling someone's name.

"Hello! Is anyone out there? Someone!" Blanca repeated those words until she heard a call that sounded like it was coming from miles away. In the blizzard, it may not have been far. But the voice...Blanca remembered, sounded just like her mother.

"Blanca? Is that you!" The voice asked from what seemed like miles.

"M-Mama? Is that you? Mama! Mama, I'm right here!" Blanca looked around once more through the fog that the ice was creating, but there was no repsonse for what seemed like hours to the girl. Suddenly, a silhouette of someone was seen through the fog.

"Blanca! Are you there?" Blanca then recognized who was really calling her. It was Shirley, who was also lost in the blizzard. She quickly ran to Shirley and waved.

"It is you, Blanca! Why were you calling out to your mother?" Shirley asked through the winds of ice.

"Oh...I just thought I had heard my Mama call out to me," the girl explained.

Shirley shook her head and said, "Really? I didn't really hear anyone until I had heard you call out through the storm, and I saw you alone. I was with Senel, for a while. Chloe was with us, too, but we lost her, and Senel said he needed to go find her. Eventually, when I was catching up, I got lost! I'm sure Senel and C are alright, though. I'm sure they're close by."

"Ah, okay. Then let's go to the top. Everyone's probably there," Blanca smiled. The Merines nodded, and the both of them made their way to the top successfully. Just as they thought, everyone was there, and they all waited for Blanca, who was still wearing the special gloves. She looked around Lumen Spring to see if there was any flower around.

"Found it!" Blanca proclaimed. She quickly pulled the flower out of the icy pond. At that exact time, everything disappeared. All of the ice melted, the flowers resumed growing, and the water of Fallingwater once again flowed normally. The remains of the blizzard passed, and all could be seen, as well. Everyone cheered except for Norma, ironically.

"Bubbles, Why ain't you cheerin'? You're usually the happiest 'round here." Moses asked.

"Well, now we're gonna have to go back again!"

"At least it's nicer." the bandit replied.

Norma agreed with him, but her legs still hurt from walking in all of that ice and snow. While Moses wasn't looking, she jumped right on top of him. Moses bacame furious.

"Bubbles! What in the hell are you doin'!"

"Just gimmie a piggy-back ride, okay? My legs hurt."

The treasure hunter kept nagging until Moses finally gave in. Everyone laughed. It was just something no one had thought they'd see...At least for a few years. As everyone walked back, Blanca stayed slow, careful not to drop the treasure of Celsius. Slowly, she kept her gaze on the flower, and Moses and Norma, who were straight ahead. When she looked up, though, she could swear she could see a little boy, maybe about her age, walking right next to the two. She stared intently on where the boy was walking as he turned around and waved to her. He looked so familiar to her, but how did she know him?

Quickly, the young girl ran up to the boy, trying to see if he was actually real. She ran all right, but she passed right through him. Harriet wondered why she had run so fast.

"Blanca? What's wrong?" Harriet asked her.

"Hmm? Oh, it's nothing. I just thought I saw someone next to Moses and Norma."

"Someone?"

"Yeah...Like...a little boy." Blanca responded.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Harriet interrogated. She wanted to know more.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Hey, look!" Norma began, "We're home!" She was right. The path leading back to town was only steps away, and everyone dashed for town, Blanca running right behind everyone. She still knew that boy from her memories, and she wanted to remember. She had to remember.

Back in town, the sun had reached it peak. Everything was just like it was before, except for the business. It had faded along with the morning hours. Everyone ran over to Will's house, eager to see what kinds of things Celsius had in store for the party.

"Ugh, we FINALLY made it!" Norma complained. She jumped off of Moses, who now had a serious pain in his neck, metaphorically and literally. "So, let's give Celsy that flower, Whitey!" Blanca walked up to the larger flower and gently put it down in Will's garden. To everyone's surprise, the flower then gave its power to Celsius's flower, now powerless next to it. Blanca knelt down and prayed again, and the light shone, along with Celsius.

"I see you've found it. Wonderful on your part, and I thank you. There's only one part of the test left, young lady, and that is a battle." Celsius explained.

"A battle!" Jay began, "I thought you only wanted us to find your treasure!"

Celsius shook her head. "I know, but it's always entertaining to see how well your opponent can actually fight, don't you think?"

Will looked around at his house. He didn't want it being destroyed by a Summon Spirit. "How about we battle outside of the city. I don't want any of the civilians hurt by a battle." The Spirit nodded and agreed. "True. Then I'll meet you outside of town. My master told me you were all quite good at fighting, so let's see if she was correct." The being then left in a white flash, eagerly awaiting the fight.

"Dad, can I watch the fight?" Harriet asked her father.

"Fine, but don't get lost, alright?" Will answered. Harriet groaned with frustration. She loved her father, but did he always have to watch her like a hawk?

"Come on, we should get going," Senel said. Everyone agreed, and the party walked with him to the battlegrounds.

When leaving Werites Beacon, a violent gust of cold wind passed by. At this point, everyone knew it was the doings of Celsius. She soon appeared through these winds and prepared her battle stance.

"One who has called me, come forth." she declared. Blanca slowly walked up to the spirit, scared to death. She didn't know if she would have to fight alone, or if she'd have to fight with Celsius. The spirit then told her, "Choose two people whom you would like to fight with."

Blanca stood there at the party, not sure of who to choose. Since Celcius fought with brute strength, she may need someone to stop her spell casting. "Uhhh...Senel!" Blanca pointed to the Marine, and he walked up to where the Summon Sprit was.

"Why'd you pick me?" He asked.

"You can block her spells...Right?" The marine nodded.

"Choose someone else," Senel whispered.

"Oh, right!" She picked one of the party at random. "Chloe!" Chloe ran up to the battlefield, while everyone stood and watched the battle commence.

"So, what's the plan going to be?" the knight asked the two. Blanca glared at Celcius, ready to battle.

"Hmmm...She may cast a lot of spells, so Blanca and Chloe, you two can go to the offensive. When she falls down, I'll throw her." Senel explained. To the two sword wielders, the plan seemed fine. If any corrections were to be made, then the battle would sort itself out. "Ready?" Celsius interrupted their plans, but most of it was already finished. From the end, they'd improvise.

"Yes, let's go." Blanca declared.

The fight had begun. Celsius charged toward the first in line, who was Senel, and threw a Demon Fist at him. When Senel saw it coming, he quickly threw another Demon Fist, and the two went on a collision course for each other. While distracted, Celsius was vulnerable, so both Blanca and Chloe slashed through the fallen Spirit as fast as they could, throwing Demon Fangs and Sword Rains. When the Summon Spirit was up, she had taken some damage, for there were scratches on her whole body. Senel tried to throw her, but she had gotten up and countered too soon for him to throw. Celcius quickly brushed the wounds off and continued to fight. While Senel and Chloe were distracted with the battle, Blanca thought she'd cast a Holy Wall, but it was very risky. If she used it incorrectly, then Senel and Chloe would be weakened for the rest of the battle. She knew it wasn't the best thing to do, but she tried it anyway.

"Holy Wall!" the young swordsgirl yelled. In a few moments, all of her allies were coated with a rainbow barrier. Both Senel and Chloe had never seen in before, so they didn't know what it was supposed to do.

"It'll help you!" Blanca called out, "It increases your defense! Keep fighting, I'll be there soon!" She soon ran into the fray, defenses boosted, and heart filled with energy. She soon dashed toward Celcius with all of her speed and threw a Sword Rain at her. She immediately fell down, Senel making his cue. He quickly picked up the Summon Spirit and threw her on the ground several times. When he finally let go, Celsius then stood up, obviously exhausted, and began to pant. In her last stand, she casted an Absolute. Unfortunately, Senel and Blanca were sucked into the spell, and no one but Chloe remained in the fray. As soon as Celsius started casting her next Absolute, Chloe threw one more Sword Rain, this time, it was Omega. After that was over, Celsius lay on the ground, weak and tired.

"Alright. I see what my master was talking about. You are all quite strong." the Summon Spirit proclaimed. Senel, Chloe, and Blanca had won. In moments, the icy wall that Celcius had made was broken, making Senel and Blanca free. The holy wall that protected the three also faded, with no signs of weakness from anyone. As Blanca got out of the icy wall, Celsius gave her a stern look.

"Child of the Future, you have done well. The only thing that I can do is provide you with what place to go next. Remember the spot that you and a friend would always spend time? That it where must go to obtain a piece of your present, and your party's future. I wish you a safe journey. Gnome will be waiting for you soon..." Celcius then faded away into white light, her sleeping soul now to head for that flower.

"Thank you...Celcius." Blanca said to herself. When all of the fighting was over, everyone in the party cheered for Senel, Chloe, and Blanca for their victory, and had a small party to celebrate. Nothing exciting happened besides Norma having to be dragged home... Later on, as dusk soon turned to night, everyone made their way home after saying their goodbyes for the day, Including Senel, Chloe, and Blanca, who went to sleep soon after arriving home.

Later that night, Blanca soon woke up. She soon realized that she wasn't going to get her memories back until she found them herself. Knowing this, she climbed out off of the couch and prepared to head for Lumen Spring. Running to the top, she saw a figure running in front of her. It was the same ghostly figure of the boy who she had seen after leaving Fallingwater earlier that day!

"W-wait! Who are you!" Blanca called out to the boy. He looked back and made a face at her.

"Try and catch me, Blanca!" The boy taunted. With that, Blanca tried running as fast as her legs could take her. She tried to grab the boy's hand, but she didn't even feel it. As the boy ran to Lumen Spring, she could see his image clearing up. She started to remember his voice clearer and clearer.

Finally, Lumen Spring came in sight. The only sounds that occupied it were the sounds of the flowing water and the laughing of the boy. Once at the top, Blanca became furious and pointed to the boy.

"What's your name?" Blanca asked.

"Oh, you don't remember me, Blanca...? It's me, Hunter!" At that moment, the swordsgirl froze. She had remembered the young man holding a baby named Hunter. She remembered the boy who warned her right before she woke up to meet everyone in the party. He was there when she traveled back in time. She remembered now.

Hunter was her best friend.

"H-Hunter? Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be home?"

The boy shook his head in dismay. "I'm not the real Hunter, just the one from your memories that were asleep. Slowly, you're beginning to remember, so…maybe I'll see you again, okay?" Hunter slowly backed away from Blanca and began to fade away.

"Hunter! Wait! Do you know anything about my parents, at all! If you're from my memory of the future, please tell me!"

"They're very close to you, I promise. You'll remember them soon..." He then walked toward Blanca and tried embracing her in a hug, but he completely faded away too soon. Hunter was not to be seen unless she came back from this past.

"Thank you, Hunter...Goodbye..." Blanca whispered to herself as she looked up to the sky, "I promise, I'll find my memories and come back." The sun then began to rise from the ocean in the view of the spring. Blanca quickly ran back down the hill toward home. She promised herself to tell everyone about Hunter. Maybe they'd know something...

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Wow, that took a while, huh? O.o; Well, don't worry, because chapter four is already done, and I'm just about to start chapter five. Hopefully, Chapter four will be up in a matter of days when I get the time to spell check it. In other news, for all of the nice people that like to review my story, I made a nice skit for you. Beware of OoCness! Ahhh! Anyways, please review, and enjoy the skit!

-Shirley and Chloe are playing chess. Shirley's about to lose and she doesn't really know what to do.-

Chloe: "Check."

-Shirley moves her king to the left, and Chloe follows it with her queen.-

Chloe: "Check."

-Shirley's getting ticked off, so she decides to keep her king at the edge of the board. Little does she know, she's going to lose, and both of the girls are being watched.-

Chloe: "Checkmate. I win for the eighth time. Maybe we should cancel the chess lessons for now…"

Shirley: "No! I have to win! Winner gets Senel!"

Chloe: "Well, alright, but…let's not bet anything…"

-20 minutes later, Shirley's in the corner of the room, crying hysterically. Senel notices her.-

Senel: "What happened to her, Chloe?"

Chloe: "Shirley? Well…She got Chlowned!"

Senel: "…Chlowned?"


	5. Chapter 4

Eep! Sorry it took so long to upload this. My computer sort of exploded, and I had to use the family computer, so it was hard to transfer all of my stuff to here. Hopefully, my computer should be fixed in a couple of days. By that time, I'll be back on a regular writing schedule, albeit I have a big part in the camp play. . ; Anyways, just some info on this chapter: Some pairing fluff near the middle, appearance of Gnome, and a journey through a cave. Oh, and one more thing: A big ol' Thank You to all of my reviewers! You guys help me keep writing, so please keep sending in those reviews! So, with all of that covered, Please Enjoy Chapter Four!

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CHAPTER FOUR

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Blanca woke up early the next morning, even though she had lacked sleepfrom the passing night. She couldn't wait to tell everyone about Hunter, andher mood was beaming. Although it was still early, she decided to go outsideand sit down by the front of the house. Before she could open the door, though, a knock was heard. She quickly opened the door and looked everywherebut down, until she heard something...Or, rather, someone.

"Hello there! Ors!" The voice said. Blanca looked down, only to findthree small otter-like creatures, (AKA the Oresoren), at the door. She waved to the three Oresoren, admiring their cute looks."Why did you come to this place?" Blanca soon asked.

"We're looking for Senel and Chloe, of course! We've been having sometrouble in our village, and we think that those two and the others can help out!" The warrior Oresoren, Quppo, replied. Blanca nodded and got the two downstairs immediately.

"Mr. Senel, Miss Chloe, come downstairs! There's a bunch of talking ottersthat want to see you and the others!" Blanca called. Minutes later, Chloecame running down the stairs, dragging Senel with her. When Chloe noticed the Oresoren inside, she sat down at the table with them and discussed, with Senel and Blanca sitting down at the table, as well.

"Quppo, Pippo, Poppo, Why did you all come here?" Chloe asked them.

"Well," Pippo started, "We've been having a lot of trouble lately. There'vebeen strange rock slides and earthquakes near our village. We believe it's Gnome, the Summon Spirit who lives around our area, but every time one of our kind tried to talk to him, he would just whine!"

Poppo made an Ors sound and agreed. "That's right! All he does is talk about how his prized possessions are gone!"

"Prized Possessions...?" Senel asked, still a bit drowsy from just waking up. He turned to both Chloe and Blanca and asked, "Do you think it's got something to do with his treasures?"

When Chloe and Blanca both heard this, they nodded. "Most likely. If it's only been a few days, then that's probably the case." Chloe explained. She then got up from the table and asked the two humans, "I guess that means I'm getting the others?"

"Hooray!Ors! Then we can come with you. We'll explain the situation to everyone!" Pippo responded. Quppo also informed them that Jay was back over at the Oresoren Village, since the earthquakes and rock slides had gotten much stronger than before. Chloe and the Oresoren then left the house to inform everyone of today's adventure.

When all was quiet, and Senel was up from the table, Blanca thought it was a perfect time to tell someone about Hunter. "Say, Mr. Senel? Do you know anyone named Hunter?" He then turned around.

"Why? Do you know anyone named Hunter?"

"Um...Yeah. Apparently, he was my best friend back home."

"Does he have a last name?"

"I think it was...No, I can't remember it…"

"Then I can't help you." Senel said in a monotonous tone. He was waking up a bit more, but he was still drowsy, ay least, until Blanca asked him a question.

"Uhm, Can I ask you something else?" The young girl asked.

"Sure."

"I know this'll sound weird, but what's your relationship with Miss Chloe?You two are living together, so..." She trailed off. Senel couldn't hear the rest, but he thought about the question for a bit. He had to take it into his mind before he could actually answer.

"Well, she's really important to me. We're like friends, but even closer."

"Is that it?"

"Yeah. Why are you asking me this, anyway? I thought you were trying to find out who this person Hunter was."

Blanca soon apologized, and all stayed silent for a few moments until Chloe returned with the party, excluding Jay. "Alright, I'm sure everyone knows the plan by now. We're going to have to see Gnome and return his treasures to him. Everyone clear?" Chloe asked as she reviewed the plan. Everyone nodded and rushed out of town into the duct to the Oresoren village, with worries for the Oresoren, and for Jay.

When everyone arrived, an Oresoren came up to them and said, "Hello everyone! Ors! If you're looking for Jay, he should be in the storage building. He's really brave when he's helping us out!" Norma chuckled at the Oresoren's words and asked him, "What about us? We work hard, too!" Norma's comment was ignored by the party as they kept walking to the storage room.

"Ohh! They're all so mean!" Norma whined, dashing to the storage room to catch up. When she did get there, she noticed something that she had never seen before. Instead of the large, closed in room with the tall walls made of rocks and dirt, she came in to see the room practically ruined. The scallop storage with the many boxes that were piled up together in groups of eight were now gone, and the back wall had been broken, only to reveal a larger, inner cave.

"Jay!" Moses called to the boy sitting on one of the large rocks, "What're you doin'? Aren't ya s'posed to help the Oresoren?"

Jay turned around to answer. "I'm keeping watch. Gnome's getting fussy, and what he calls his 'Gnomies' are even worse."

"His what?" Senel asked. Everyone looked at Jay quizzically. Jay soon explained, "It's something he calls his Oresoren sidekicks, apparently."

"Oh. That's sort of an odd name, but if he's into nicknames, then that's my kind of Summon Spirit!" Norma cheered. "C'mon, let's go in! I want to see Gnome!" She dragged the nearest person to her, who was Senel, and she dragged him to the inner cave. When Chloe saw this, she immediately ran after Senel and Norma. Everyone else soon came along to follow the 3, as well.

When everyone was in the cave, the winding twists and turns seemed like they were endless. Every time you took one cavern, two or more paths kept rising up. Lucky for them, Gnome's whines and cries were very loud, so they followed the paths that had sounded like Gnome was in, and they quickly headed toward the sound. When it got too loud, many of the party had to cover their ears, but for some reason, Norma wasn't affected. She looked around at the party and asked, "Hey, why are you guys covering your ears? This isn't that bad."

"That's only because you can relate to Gnome, Norma." Jay commented. Norma turned around at him and gave him 'the look', but he ignored it, for something caught his eye in the middle of the tunnel.

"Wait. Is that the way to Gnome?" Jay asked everyone, ears still covered. He'd noticed a small light from the edge of the caves, and he concluded that the corridor of light had to be the one where Gnome resides, for the sounds of panicking sounded even louder from there. He then motioned everyone to go with his hand, and ran toward the light, everyone else following. Jay was correct, as Gnome was seen running around the place as if he were looking for something.

"Hey, whaddya think you're doing in my hideout! You think you can just come into my bachelor pad without even being invited? How rude is that!" He'd noticed the party walk into his humble abode. It wasn't really too detailed, just a large room of rocks with a large pile towered up perhaps ten feet in the center, with stairs carved of earth leading to the very top; this was used as a nest of sorts.

"Well," Chloe began, "We're sorry to intrude, but we had heard that your treasures have been missing." When hearing that, Gnome paused for a moment and ran right up to the party. His eyes soon widened as he inquired, "You mean...you know where they are?"

Senel shook his head and informed the Summon Spirit, "No. But we're willing to help you find it, if you help out Blanca when we do." Senel then turned his head to Blanca, who walked up to where Gnome was standing.

"Uhm...If I may ask, what would your treasure be?"

"Treasure! I've got two TREASURES! Don't try to pass me off like I'm an idiot, 'cause I'm not that stupid. You said you'd help me find them, so then I'll give you the info. One's a big shovel. You'll notice it by the little picture of m'self on the handle. The second one's a red ribbon with a big ol' jewel in the center. Get it!"

"Got it." Everyone agreed.

"Gooooood." Gnome said nonchalantly, "Just make sure to watch out for them falling rocks! If you don't, then you'll get yourself a big bump on the head! I'd control 'em for you, but they just don't seem to listen. Most likely they're in that cave to my right, so just look around there, 'kay?" Everyone nodded after listening to his warnings. He may have been a pain in the butt, but he did give enough description to make looking as easy as possible. "Anyways, I'm gonna go take a nap while you all look for my stuff. Have fun! Love ya! Bye!"

Everyone stood in silence for a moment. Never had they seen a Summon Spirit so arrogant like Gnome. Everyone looked around silently until Norma said, "Well, he was annoying, but we can at least take his advice! Onward!" Everyone nodded and performed the 'Charge!' cheer and ran into the western cave.

As everyone entered the cave, light did not go scarce, to many of theparty's surprise. Only the sounds of moving feet were heard. Small rocks moved about by the shaking of the unbalance of power. Sometimes, the shakes were so severe that everyone had to get down and hold on to the rocks. Fortunately for them, none were violent enough to make the larger rocks cave in. Once about twenty minutes into the cave, Moses sighed of boredom.

"Aw, all we're seein' is rocks, rocks, rocks. I don't see any shovel at all, so can we at least rest? My legs're gettin' sleepy."

Will turned around to Moses. "Don't be a baby. We may have to search these caves for days, so get used to it." This time, both Moses and Norma sighed. If they were going to have to search for days, then it would be a very long journey in these caves. Jay then added in his comment. "Seriously, Moses, if you were going to get tired along the way, then maybe you shouldn't have come along. It'd be a lot more peaceful."

Moses grew furious, and his tiredness and fatigue left his body in exchange for anger. "Now don't you start, Jay! You're just gonna make things worse, yerself!"

As the fight continued, Blanca whispered over to Will, a devious plan in her mind. "May I do the honors, Mr. Will?" Will shrugged and said, "It'd be my pleasure." In a bit of a sarcastic tone. Blanca made a quiet cheer and bonked both of the hooligans on the head.

"Ow! Whad'ya do that for, Whitey?" Moses asked in an angered tone.

"Um...Because Mr. Will said I could?" Jay let out a slight chuckle and walked on. Moses, who wasn't really the type to hold a grudge to little girls, let the grude fade as he walked along, the tired feeling in his legs leaving his body.

Sooner or later, Senel noticed some noise coming from the end of the tunnel. He'd never heard the noise before, so he quickly ran toward the sound. It almost sounded like a drum, beating at the very same beat. It was very precise, but he had heard something like it in his past before. Everyone soon caught up with him as the noise grew even louder. When he went through the exit of the tunnel, he saw more Oresoren then he could imagine, marching in large squads of perhaps hundreds. As they took a step, and "Ors!" could be heard out of every one of them as they "Ors"'d a tune while marching.

"Jay, what is this...?" Shirley asked. Jay soon looked around, his face giving off a slight smile.

"It's an Oresoren squad. Since these new caves are opened, it's a good place for the Oresoren to train for battle. As soon as they pass, we'll be able to get through." Shirley nodded, somewhat confused, but grasping the moral of the squad. She looked around for a bit, and saw something shining in the caves. It looked like an object that was stuck in the rocks, but she pointed to it and tried to get everyone's attention.

"Everyone, look! Could that be the shovel that Gnome was talking about?" Everyone quickly took a look at what she was pointing to.

"That must be! I can see a carving of Gnome from here!" Senel said, confidence in his voice.

When the Oresoren squad had passed, everyone ran to the place where theshovel was. Senel was right, that it had been Gnome's shovel, but it was tightly lodged into a rock, and the earth walls above were cracked. It seemed like they would fall if someone or something tried to break it out of the mold of clay-ish rocks.

"Maybe I can try pulling it out..." Blanca said.

"Maybe you shouldn't. The rocks could break any second if you pulled it." Jay added.

Blanca looked at the party. She'd devised a plan, but she wasn't sure if it was completely safe. She discussed it with everyone anyway. "Okay, I think I know how to get the shovel out of that rock. What I'll do is pull it out, and then I'll run away as soon as I can. Do you think you guys could cover me if rocks start falling down?"

"I'll do it, then. If anyone else here did, they'd be too slow. You'd probably get killed instantly by those rocks." Jay walked up and readied himself, making sure that his daggers were close by.

"Alright, Jay, here I go!" Blanca yelled as she ran forward to pull out the shovel.

"Be careful!" Shirley added. Blanca nodded while pulling the shovel out, and off she pulled. As she pulled harder, cracks began to grow farther apart from each other while she pulled. Jay tightened his grip on the daggers. Blanca grunted and groaned when she pulled, cold beads of sweat running down her face as she did so. Finally, the shovel began to move from its earthy prison. Blanca's confidence grew as she pulled even harder. Then, only the metal part was stuck. She tightened her grasp on the handle as hard as she could and made one final pull. When the whole thing was pulled out, large rocks began to tumble down from the lower walls of the cave.

"No!" Jay yelled. As soon as he could, he dashed to the large boulder that was on a collision course with Blanca. He jumped up and threw a sharp dagger at the rock, cutting it into four quarters. Although he ran as fast as his legs could carry him, Blanca was very close to being hit with a rock. When Jay was close enough, he jumped up to catch Blanca, but it was too late. As soon as he caught her, both the girl and the ninja were hit. They soon fell to the ground, the rocks crashing right next to them. Moments later, everyone crowded around them. The shovel was held by Will and Shirley because of its massive weight. Jay soon woke up, surrounded by everyone, and Blanca laying next to him.

"Jay! You're okay!" Shirley said with a relieved tone. He nodded, but he was in serious pain from the impact. "How's Blanca?" the ninja asked.

"She's unconscious, but she's still breathing, so she should be up soon." Will told him, "For now, we're going to set up camp here. Senel, would you be able to guard for the night?"

Senel nodded. "Sure. Who's going to cook?" Chloe raised her hand and volunteered. Everyone began to prepare for dinner, while Chloe began to cook. Jay was able to get up and lay down on a small cushion that Shirley had packed. He lay down on it and ate his dinner there. Everyone else who was in good condition sat down and enjoyed the food that Chloe had made. As night fell, the cave grew even darker, and soon, the only light that had covered the cave was the faint glow of the campfire. Sooner or later, everyone decided to go to sleep. All except Senel, who had stayed up to keep watch on the campfire. As everyone entered their tents to sleep, they fell into their own dreams and waited for the sun to rise.

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SPLASH! Chloe, as well, was in a dream. She had fallen in the water, but how or why she was in the water was a mystery. She tried to breathe. It was odd, but she was able to, despite being in the depths of the salty waters of the sea. She looked around to see if anyone was there, but all she saw was water for miles and miles. She tried swimming up, but she didn't know how to. She tried swimming down, but nothing happened.

"H-Hello? Is anyone out there!" She yelled. There was an echo that rang out into the sea, but no one was there. She kept falling and falling, but still, no one was there. She then closed her eyes, trying to wake up from this nightmare. She would keep falling, and no one would hear her. To her, she was dead. She could do nothing, hear only silence, and see only the faint light of the water's surface.

"Chloe..." She heard someone call. Chloe quickly opened her eyes. She saw someone swimming down closer to her, but she couldn't get a clear view until they were very close. Seconds later as she fell, she saw this person.

"Coolidge..?" The figure nodded. It was Senel. When he was even closer, he took her hand and held it tightly in his. He soon let go and whispered something that she couldn't hear. When she read his lips, she had seen him say the word 'love'. Was he trying to tell her that he loved her? Her cheeks soon turned a bright red color. This is what Chloe wanted to hear for what seemed like an eternity, but a sadness fell over her as she embraced Senel in a hug. She knew it was a dream, but was it trying to tell her something...?

The moment she embraced him, the water glowed brighter and brighter until it blinded her eyes, and she couldn't see any of the water, or Senel, or anything else.

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Chloe woke up, a sadness awakening in her heart with her. She looked around in the tent she slept in, eyes watering. Was she really that sad that it was only a dream? Or was it because her dream was taunting her wants? The knight sighed and sat there thinking, only to hear a noise coming from outside. She quickly ran out of the entrance to the tent, sword in hand, and yelled, "Who's there!"

"Chloe? What're you doing so late at night?" Chloe paused. It must've just been Senel fiddling with the fire to keep it burning.

"Oh...I'm sorry. I thought I'd heard something else," She said, "I just haven't been able to sleep. For some reason, there's been a lot on my mind lately, so I've been kind of reckless..."

"Don't worry about it. Anyway, it's gets kind of cold around here. Maybe you should sit down for a bit." Chloe nodded, and she took a seat right next to Senel. Everything stayed silent for a few moments as Senel stayed the same. He had remembered what Blanca had said, those words: "What's your relationship to Miss Chloe?" ringing in his mind. He thought while he threw some wood into the small campfire that was extra. 'What do I really feel about Chloe...? I know she's important to me, but...' He stopped and remembered everything that happened to both of them from the moment they met to their 'date gone wrong'. He'd felt a mix of emotions from all of those times, but then, in the middle of it all, he'd felt something different in his heart. He'd felt this way before with Stella, but...

"Senel..? Are you falling asleep on me?" Chloe asked him playfully. His thoughts immediately took a halt and he looked over at Chloe.

"No, I'm okay. I'm only...a little tired." He said, yawning. Chloe shook her head and smiled. 'When will he ever learn?' she thought. The knight looked over at her dear friend and noticed that he had already fallen sound asleep. She watched, wide-eyed. She had known that Senel was a heavy sleeper, but she didn't know he could fall asleep fast, too!

Chloe sighed, but not in a frustrated way. She was happy that she was with Senel and seeing him asleep made her tired, as well. Her drowsiness made her eyes slowly shut, and she gently rested her head on Senel's shoulder. Right now, Chloe didn't care if anyone saw her. She was with Senel, and it made her happy. Slowly, her eyes closed fully, and the young knight fell asleep on the marine's shoulder.

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"C! Senny! Stop getting comfortable, and get your butts moving! Blanca and Jay are okay now, so let's go!" Norma called.

"Aah!" Chloe screamed. She grabbed the attention of everyone close by. They all stared at her like she was crazy. She soon backed up from Senel and ran back into her tent to get her equipment.

"What's with her?" Moses asked. Norma turned around and told Moses, "It's called 'Embarrassment', Red. It happens when everyone notices you--"

"I know what it means, dangit! Ugh, I'm packin' up. Whitey, wanna help?" Blanca, who was now fully rejuvenated from a good night's rest, came and followed Moses to collect the camping equipment. Everyone helped get the equipment together. When everything was fully packed, everyone was ready to go and find the second of Gnome's treasures: The Red Ribbon. Well, everyone, except for Senel. There was a big discussion about who was going to wake Senel up, until he finally woke up by himself. Everyone circled him and gasped in surprise.

"Wow, Senel! I'm so proud of you! Chloe's sleeping habits must've rubbed off on you!" Shirley said in an awe-struck voice. Everyone laughed, even Chloe, who'd blushed at the comment, but thought it was also funny for someone to say, especially Shirley.

"So, since Mr. Senel's up, does that mean we can find the ribbon?"

"Yes. We should keep looking around these caves for that treasure, but we all need to be more careful. Especially you, Blanca." Will declared. Blanca's head drooped down. She only wanted to find the treasures as fast as she could. Although, she had known that Will was right.

"About that..." Blanca began, "I guess I should apologize for getting in the way. I only wanted to get both treasures as quick as possible..." Senel shook his head. He'd actually been a bit perkier this morning, so he consoled, "Don't worry. We understand that you want to be home." Blanca's head soon rose up from its position when she heard this. She was glad that Senel had understood her, and hopefully everyone else, as well.

"Anyway, we should get going. We don't have time to lose," Chloe mentioned. Everyone turned to her and nodded, and the search was on for the Red Ribbon.

The first thing the party did was split up to cover more ground. The teams were split to Senel and Norma, Moses and Chloe, Jay and Will, and Blanca and Shirley. They were able to scout all four of the tunnels of the cave, whether the paths resulted in dead ends, or rocks blocking paths had to be destroyed along in the search. Everyone looked high, low, and even diagonally if they could help it. All that was to be found, much to Norma's luck, was only a bunch of gems, jewels, and shiny minerals. Everyone excluding Norma came out empty handed, much to Blanca's disappointment. When they met up again at the central area of the cave, the only person in good spirits had seemed to be Norma. They'd searched for hours, but no luck.

"I can't believe we weren't able to find it after all this time!" Shirley pouted, "We should have at least found traces of it, but..." Everyone sighed, sitting down as they did so. It had been hours since the party had seen real light, and now, they were getting very tired of being in the cave.

Will sighed in disappointment. "Maybe Gnome overlooked the detecting of the treasure. He said it was here, but--" The scholar was interrupted by the call of an Oresoren, most likely being Poppo.

"Ors! Ors!" Poppo cried. It looked like he had something in his hand, but no one could make out what the object was. "Everyone! I'm glad you're here! I've been looking for you since you left us at the Altar of Gnome!" Everyone looked down at the otter-like creature who was now panting for breath. He then reached held out his hands. When he did, everyone gasped in awe, feeling a mix of anger, frustration, and fatigue at the same time.

"Poppo? Wh-Where did you find that ribbon?" Jay asked. He quickly snatched it from the Oresoren's paws. Everyone gasped as Poppo cocked his head to his side with a confused look.

"Oh, that? I found it a few days ago! I was going to tell you about it, but I guess I forgot. I had more important things to do because I had to protect the house from the earthquakes that happened when I had that thing. It just got worse and worse!" Everyone stood in silence. Everyone was furious from all that looking, but calmed down, for their mission was finally beginning to start its conclusion.

"Well...I guess we can give it to Gnome, right...?" Blanca asked the party in a fatigued voice. Everyone nodded, sighing as they did so, and Poppo left the scene, afraid he may have gotten wrung by the neck if he was there long enough. The party walked over to Gnome's altar, somewhat happy, but somewhat dead by the irony of it all.

As the 'Fun Bunch' walked up to Gnome's altar, tired and fatigued from the two days straight inhabiting the cave, Blanca walked up to the altar, treasures in hand, and said, "Look, ah...We've found your treasures. Do you think you could help me with my memory now, Mr. Gnome?" Slowly, the Summon Spirit turned around from what he was doing and walked toward the treasures. He eyed them closely, and nodded to himself. He confirmed the treasures.

"Yup. Can't believe you found 'em, but you did! I'm so glad to see them back! Well, one of 'em, anyways." Everyone stared at Gnome for a moment as he picked up the ribbon and handed it to Blanca.

"Here ya go. I don't really need it anymore, I only use it before 'cause my master thought it was pretty." Everyone stood there silently. They had gone through blood, sweat, and perhaps even tears to get that ribbon, and he rejected it like it's an old piece of clothing that just didn't fit him anymore.

"Whaddya mean, 'Ya don't need it anymore!' We went through a lot to get that thing and ya'll just go on to throw it away!" Moses yelled, obviously furious at Gnome. Gnome snickered and snorted, sounding like a large pig.

"Now look here, Man-of-Men, I don't mean to rain on yer parade, I'm just not liking that thing anymore! Now I'll help little-miss-snowflake over there if you'd just keep quiet!" The great being jumped up and took his shovel with his power while he was in midair. He pointed the shovel at Moses and threw it at him, knocking him a few feet back, but not injuring him at all. Jay smirked for a moment. He took a liking to the spirit as he knocked Moses back, but he also worried for Moses in the back of his mind.

Gnome soon pointed his shovel to Blanca. For a moment, the young girl flinched. She didn't know if Gnome was going to knock her back, or if she was just being pointed at. To her luck, it was the latter. "Ah, don't worry, kid. I wouldn't hurt a cutie like you. Oh! Right! Your memory-thing! Let's see..." Gnome looked in a small book that read, "To-do" in ancient Relares.

He quickly turned to a page in the book and found his place. "Let's see, here. You're...Blanca? Ohhh! You're THAT kid! That kid who came from the future! Riiight! Alright...Says here that you can find your memory by going to a place you visited with your daddy once, mkay?"

Blanca smiled and took a slight bow in respect. "Thank you, Mr. Gnome! Uhm...You said you didn't need your ribbon, right?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"Would it be okay if I took it with me?"

The summon spirit thought for a moment. It was something he loved dearly, but he knew he'd never use for another thousand years or so. He reluctantly nodded and said nonchalantly, "Yeah, sure, whatever. Just make sure to give it back in a thousand years, oka--Oh, wait...You don't even live that long, do ya? Oh, well. Keep it, then. I'll find it myself."

Blanca then ran up to the grounded Summon Spirit and gave him a hug. "Thanks a million, Mr. Gnome!" She took the ribbon from where it lay on the ground and handed it to Shirley.

"Ummm...Miss Shirley, do you think you could help me out with this ribbon?" Shirley then nodded and smiled. She saw a small clip in the back where the ribbon could be put in her hair, and she tied it in the back of her head, the silver gem in the ribbon shining like a star. Blanca thanked her, and Gnome soon said his goodbyes to everyone. Conversation ensued soon after.

"So, I guess we're done here?" Will asked the party.

"Good! I need to get these gems polished!" Norma cheered, the bag of jewels and gems still on her back. Everyone stared at her for a moment, but soon continued the conversation.

"So then, I suppose I'll see you all later," Jay said. He was glad that he was close to home. As he left the party for a good night's sleep, everyone waved him goodbye as he ran on home.

"Well then, let's go to town. We can talk about where we're going next tomorrow." Senel added. Everyone nodded and began to have a race to the duct home, eager to have a good night's rest, as well.

As everyone made it to town, they took their normal paths home. Everyone, except for Blanca. On the way toward Senel and Chloe's house, she had taken the wrong path and had ended up in the western part of town. She wandered through the streetlamp-lit part of town and took every step carefully. Not sure of where to go, she looked around to see if there was any sign that would point her in the right direction. She then turned her head toward a large staircase that lead to a dead end. She decided to take that path to see if there was anyone there who could help her.

"H-Hello? Is anyone there?" Blanca asked as she made her ascent up the stairs. She saw no one, but the place that she had entered looked familiar to her. When looking for another place to go, the young girl found herself in a small graveyard. All seemed solemn as she looked around, but one grave had caught her eye. It was a large looking grave with three pointed tops, similar to the front of a king's crown. Blanca walked up to it and read the inscription on it. The young girl's thoughts slowly came to a screeching halt. A white light flashed through her eyes, and she was caught in a memory that had been forgotten.

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A young Blanca noticed her father at the stairway to the graveyard. She ran up to him and asked, "Papa, what are you doing here? Mama's looking everywhere for you! It's dinnertime!"

"Ah. Sorry about that, Blanca. I was just taking a walk, that's all," Her father told her. She tilted her head a bit.

"Walking around in a graveyard? That's silly, Papa. What were you really doing here?" Her father shook his head and said, "You're beginning to sound like your mother. I was just here to visit an old friend..."

"An old friend?" Blanca asked. Her father nodded, but he stood up while Blanca stood next to him, her arms crossed. "Don't worry. I'll tell you when you're older, I promise."

Blanca smiled and said, "Alrighty! Well, c'mon then! Mama's making your favorite!" She then dragged her father by the hand off to her home and laughed. She was glad to be with her father. She'd just wished that she could see her father again. Time was growing longer and longer.

"Blanca...?"

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The white light shown again. She was soon brought back to reality, and the first person she'd seen was Shirley. "Blanca? Why are you over at the graveyard? You should be getting back to Senel and C!"

"Oh. I'm sorry. I sort of lost my way, so I wasn't sure which way their house was," She responded. Shirley then noticed the grave she was in front of, and looked at her surprisingly. She asked, "Why are you at this grave?"

Blanca turned around and looked at who the grave had been for, only seeing that it was for someone she didn't know. "I...I don't know. It was just nice here, so I thought maybe a spirit would help me get back to Mr. Senel's house."

"Well, I'm sure this person would help you if she could. She...Well, she's actually my older sister," Shirley replied, her face had a sad look on it. Blanca turned to Shirley and gasped.

"If you don't mind me asking, how did she die...?"

"You see, there was a war that went on about 6 months ago. A man named Vaclav tried to take my sister and me and use us as bullets for something called the Nerifes cannon, which could destroy a mountain when shot. I was lucky enough to survive, but my sister..." Shirley trailed off, although Blanca surely knew the end of the tale. The Orerines girl reached out and touched the grave, reading the inscription once again to truly appreciate the help this person gave.

"Stella TelMes..." Blanca read, "Loving sister and friend to all." There were other characters that were also etched into the grave. Blanca squinted her eyes in the dark of the night and read, "The star of the beginning will never die."

Shirley then stared wide-eyed at Blanca. She looked once more at the characters and asked, "Blanca, you can read Relares?"

Blanca shook her head a bit and told the Ferines girl, "Well, only a bit. I was being taught before I left. My Mama said it was important to learn." Shirley smiled at this and reached out to Stella's grave. At first, when Stella died, she thought it had a good effect on her, making her stronger, but she knew it only made things worse when she was shot down by Senel after telling him she loved him. Although, as time went on, things grew normal again, and hopefully, for Shirley and perhaps someone else, Senel was slowly getting over the loss of his dear Stella.

"Miss Shirley? Are you alright?" Blanca asked, breaking the chain of thought that Shirley was in.

"Ah, yes, I'm okay now. By the way, would you like to stay at my house tonight? Well, it's not exactly my house, but I could ask if you'd be able to stay," Shirley responded. Blanca smiled and nodded. She had known that Senel and Chloe would be worried, but she'd tell them everything when the party met up again in the morning.

"Okay! Follow me, and stay close!" Shirley said as she smiled. Blanca then stayed close by Shirley until the two reached their destination: Musette's house. Blanca waited outside while Shirley asked permission for Blanca to stay.

Moments later, the door opened, and Shirley made a hand motion to signal that it was all right. Blanca slowly walked into the house and stared in awe when she was fully in. The little girl didn't know that a house could be as big as this! Just then, an old woman's voice was heard laughing.

"Oh, so you like this place, do you not?" The lady asked, it was Musette, Werites Beacon's head lady.

"Um...Yes, ma'am! It's very nice, and it's very spacious, too. I hope you don't mind me staying here." Blanca then bowed slightly in respect. Musette gave the girl a pat on the head.

"It's my pleasure to have a guest here, especially someone like you! Shirley's told me much about you." The elder replied. Blanca was a bit embarrassed, but she thanked the lady once again and walked upstairs to the sleeping quarters, Shirley following.

"Well, I hope you don't mind me being here either, Miss Shirley. I hope I'm not too much of a burden..." Blanca said. Shirley shook her head and told her it was alright, and that she didn't mind at all. The Orerines girl then lay down on the plush bed and stared at the ceiling for a few moments. She sighed and turned her gaze to Shirley, who was sitting at the table, writing a letter of some sort.

"What are you writing?" Blanca asked.

"Oh, this? It's just a letter for C. Don't read it, though! It's a bit personal." Shirley said with a slight blush on her face and continued, "She really is a nice person. She helped me find a way to stay calm when I'm nervous, so I was just replying back thanking her."

"You mean like staying calm and taking deep breaths?" Blanca added in.

"Yes, just like that!"

"Oh, I see. Well, I'm sorry to intrude your privacy. I guess I'll get going to bed."

"Alright then. Good night, Whitey!" Shirley laughed. The Ferines girl didn't know what her friend's reaction would be, but she took it normally, and wished Shirley a good night, as well. Blanca soon fell asleep as she remembered days gone by with her family, the faces blurred and distorted to her, but the words that they spoke as clear as day. She then hoped once more that she would soon be with her family and her friends. There were only three Summon Spirits to go!

* * *

Yay! I finally got this up for you guys! Just a little story update, Chapter 5 is in progress! Since Gnome didn't mention it, I'll tell you now that the next Summon Spirit is going to be Shadow! Okay, I think that's it. Next time, I'll have another skit for you guys. Until next time, please review! 


	6. Chapter 5

Hey, guys! Welcome to chapter five of SotP! I've just recently looked at the hit count, and I got 1100! Yay! Thank you all for liking my story! I just hope you guys keep reviewing! The lack of reviews for chapter four was kind of a downer…But, there was one reviewer, and that was Kite1763! Thanks a lot! Anyways, in this chapter you'll find out Blanca's greatest fear, which is actually quite funny. So, sit back, relax, and enjoy!

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CHAPTER FIVE

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Morning had soon risen as soon as night had left the Legacy. Birds were singing their songs to greet the morning, and a peaceful calm had enveloped the city of Werites Beacon. At this time, Blanca awakened from her sleep early in the peaceful morning, but she wasn't going to stay at Musette's house. She'd felt guilty about not telling Senel and Chloe where she was going to be, so she left a note in the middle of the small table in the sleeping quarters, and was on her way back to Senel and Chloe's.

As she walked down the road, she noticed the lack of people that were outside on this morning. The paths were only used by a few people at best, and none of the carts or busy people were outside. Was she awake that early in the morning, or was there something she didn't know about? Either way, she kept walking along the dirt roads, her spirits high, but her stomach empty.

"What I'd do for breakfast now..." Blanca thought. She then noticed a jingling in her pocket. Not sure what it was, Blanca slowly took it out of her pocket and found a bag of some sort. When she opened it up, she'd found about three thousand gald with her! She soon danced around the streets with the money in her pocket, wondering what she would do with it. She kept thinking and thinking, and soon, she became too involved in her thoughts to notice that she was about to bump into someone.

"Aaah!"

"Watch where you're going!"

Blanca fell down on the ground, her money scattering all over the place. She turned her head toward the person who she had crashed into.

"Jay? What are you doing here so early?" Blanca asked as Jay got up.

"I was about to head to Senel and Chloe's house for...personal business. I was hired for an information assignment." Jay replied in a somewhat monotonous tone. When he said that, Blanca wasn't sure what exactly Jay was doing, but she knew that whatever it was, he was going to Senel's, so at least she could follow him.

"Oh, alright. I'll go with you, then. I was heading there myself. But, umm...Can you help me find my money? You made me drop it." Jay nodded soon after, and the two began to pick up as much money as they could find. As Jay picked a Gald coin up from the dirt road, he'd noticed the year on the coin. It was, indeed, twelve years from where the party was living now.

"This money...It's really from the future. No one's going to take it when they see the date. Anyone who sees it besides us will think it's counterfeit." Jay told the girl. Her head soon turned toward the ground as she picked up the Gald coins and put them in the small bag they were originally in. Sooner or later, all of the coins were picked up, and both Jay and Blanca sighed in relief. When Jay dusted himself off from the ground, he noticed the time.

"Blanca! We need to hurry!" Jay commanded. He grabbed Blanca's hand and literally dragged her from the ground until she was able to stand up and run. "Aaah! Jay, why are you going so fast!" Blanca asked while Jay rushed down the road.

"Personal business. If I don't do this, then I won't get paid."

Blanca then looked at Jay and asked, "You get paid? By whom?"

"Whoever hired me." The ninja simply replied.

"And that would be..?" Blanca was cut off, for before Jay could answer, the two of them were at the home of Senel Coolidge. Blanca began to head toward the door, but Jay, on the other hand, ran into the bushes and took out a pair of binoculars from his pocket, closely watching for any movement from the nearby window. The young girl was going to say something to the ninja, but he was too tied up in whatever 'business' he had. Knocking on the door, Blanca looked once more at the boy with a strange look on her face, but Jay made a motion to take her gaze off of him when he eyed her. Moments later, the door opened, and Senel stood in the doorway.

"Blanca? Where were you last night?" The marine asked.

"I was with Shirley. She found me when I got lost in the city and offered to let me stay at Musette's. Sorry I didn't tell you." Blanca then walked through the doorway, and closed the door behind her. Jay, who was still looking through his binoculars, eyed through the window very carefully as he tried to pick up the words of Senel and Blanca's conversation. He took a notepad and began to jot down whatever he could hear.

Suddenly, a noise came from behind Jay. He looked back out of distraction, only to find Norma, who had run into the bushes in the passing moments.

"Yo, JJ! What're you doing out here?" the treasure hunter asked.

"What you told me to do. Now give me my pay." Jay replied.

"No, not until C comes around. Where is she, anyway?"

Jay scrambled through his notes and turned his head toward Norma. He had thought he had heard passersby, so he whispered, "Apparently, she's gone out shopping. She was going to bring Senel with her, but he was, quote on quote, 'Preparing for the holiday'."

"Aw, JJ! You missed everything! I told you to get up early and see if you saw anything...well...Uhh...Interesting!" Norma yelled. Several people turned their heads toward Norma. Many had thought she was just having a conversation with a bush. She coldly glared at them and said, "Mind your own beeswax! Geez!" One of these people passing by, (speak of the devil), was Chloe. She ran toward the treasure hunter, shopping bags in hand, and looked down in the bushes to find Jay, as well as Norma.

"Jay? Norma? What are you two doing here so early?"

"Business." They both replied. Chloe shrugged and rolled her eyes.

"If you two are trying to spy on Coolidge, trust me, he's not very entertaining at this hour."

"Actually, we thought you were ther--Augh!" Jay was cut off by Norma, who had elbowed him. Hard. Norma soon took Jay by the collar and dragged him with her as she ran into Senel's house. Chloe, with a puzzled look on her face, ran into Senel's house as fast as she could.

"Alright, what's going on with you two?" Chloe asked Jay and Norma, Senel and Blanca staring at Chloe with a look of confusion. Jay elbowed Norma, and then vice versa. Neither of them confessed the true motive of their plan. At least, not until Chloe drew her sword.

"Okay, okay! I asked JJ to spy on you two to see if anything...Oh, I dunno, anything interesting happens at this house in the morning." Norma confessed.

Chloe sheathed her sword and gave both Norma and Jay a whack upside the head.

"Chloe, you're starting to act like Will. It's normal for these two, anyway. Besides, I guess they can stay here until everyone's here and ready to go." Senel reminded the knight.

"Oh, that's right," Chloe began, "We were planning to go to the Ferines village today. It's a holiday there, apparently."

Norma tilted her head in confusion while Jay ran to the calendar. Jay then snapped his fingers as if he were remembering something, walked back to the confused Norma and said, "Today's Ferines Day, it's the day when the Ferines moved onto the Legacy from the mainland in the loss of the great war between them and the Orerines."

"Is that why everything's so quiet today?" Blanca asked.

"Yes," Jay began, "After peace was made between the two races recently, Ferines Day must also be a holiday here. I suppose if we're going to the Ferines village, that means we'll also be seeing Shadow, correct?" Senel turned his head toward Jay and nodded.

"I guess we'll just wait for everyone to arrive, then." Chloe replied. Everyone else then sat down and waited until Shirley and the others arrived, Shirley being a bit peppier than usual. When everyone was ready, Will stood near the door, ready to scold Norma in advance.

"Alright, off we go. Just a word of warning, Norma. Don't get too excited, alright?" Will pleaded as he went through the doorway outside. Norma was furious and had one of her little tantrums.

"Ugh! Why is it always me, Teach! Red gets into more trouble than I do, for goodness sakes!" Norma complained, noticing that she was the last in the house. She then rushed out to catch up with the party and slammed the door behind her. Running out from Senel's home to the main gate of Werites Beacon, Norma caught up with the party as they took the duct to the Ferines Village, eagerly awaiting what kind of festivities may await them.

Upon entering the Village of the Ferines, everyone gasped at what they had seen. The once blue waters of the dolphin-shaped lake were no more. Instead, dark, murky waters painted the top of the lake. Shirley was afraid that something may have happened in the village, so she ran on ahead of the party, everyone quickly following her. At the entrance, Maurits stood, waving to the party. Shirley had sensed uneasiness in the village, and in Maurits.

"Ah, Merines. Everyone. I welcome you once more to our village. Our festivities would have taken place today, but unfortunately, with this darkness in our waters, we cannot hold our celebration." Maurits explained. Soon after his explanation, a young Ferines girl dressed in a traditional Ferines gown appeared before the party.

"Thyra!" Shirley began, "How are you? How is everyone?"

"Everyone's fine, but we can't seem to fix the problem with this water. You know we can't hold our celebration with this kind of water." Thyra replied. Jay then turned his head toward the Ferines Elder and said, "Maurits, I believe this young girl here may know the answer to your problem." He pointed to Blanca, and Maurits's gaze then focused on her.

"Well, now look at this! I don't believe I've seen your face before. Do you know what has happened to our waters, young one?" Maurits asked Blanca.

"My name is Blanca, sir," The young girl began, "The summon spirit that lives here, Shadow, has misplaced a treasure of his. That treasure contains most of his power. You see, I traveled back in time from 12 years in the future, and when that happened, the treasures were misplaced. Most likely, the treasure of Shadow must be underwater if the water is acting strange like this."

"I see. Thank you," Maurits said. He then motioned the party to be led to the Meetinghouse, where Maurits resided. Everyone, including Thyra, ran into the small cottage. When inside, everyone took a seat and discussed the current events.

"How can we resolve this problem?" Thyra asked.

"What we can do is talk to Shadow and tell him we'll be getting his treasure for him," Senel began. Will then took charge of the conversation.

"Right," Will started, "Soon after, we can swim down into the waters of the lake and obtain the treasure. Blanca will then give it to Shadow, and his powers will be restored to him, therefore clearing the lake."

When Chloe heard the word 'swim', she immediately got a headache. _'We're going to have to swim...? In THOSE waters?'_ She thought. Shirley, who Chloe was sitting next to, saw the almost seasick look on her face.

"C?" She whispered through the ongoing conversation, "Are you okay? You look kind of sick..." Chloe ignored the comment. All she did was whisper "Can't...Swim..." Under her breath. Shirley smiled and whispered back.

"Don't worry, C! If anything goes wrong, I'll hold your hand so you won't drown, okay?" Shirley consoled, trying to cheer Chloe up. Chloe was then able to pull herself together again. She smiled at Shirley and thanked her for the offer.

"Alright, so is everythin' set fer us?" Moses asked the party. Everyone soon nodded, and the group was on their way back to the entrance of the village.

While everyone stopped at the small altar where Shadow had called home Blanca walked up to the altar, knelt down, and kept her hands in a prayer-like position. Moments later, the darkened altar spit out a black mist, similar to the one possessed by Schwartz, but to the party, the mist was no threat, as they knew that Shadow was harmless without his treasure. When all of Shadow's body had risen up, he looked down at the travelers who had awakened him.

"Who goes there?" the summon spirit asked.

"We're here to help you reclaim your treasure, Shadow. If we don't stop it from releasing its power in the lake, then the waters will stay darkened forever on this Ferines holiday." Blanca said, trying to be as polite as possible to the dark spirit.

Shadow stayed in his thought for a few moments, but then turned his head back to the travelers and announced, "Fine...Do so...It is a Dark Orb..." He then disappeared back into the dark altar, and Blanca dusted herself off from her praying position. Norma was then the first to speak.

"Well, that guy has a way with words, huh?"

"Norma, don't be rude." Chloe scolded. Norma then turned her back to Chloe and mimicked what she had said in a provocative tone. Knowing Norma, Chloe ignored the comment and turned toward the party.

"Alright. The only matter we have is being able to stay underwater for a long period of time," Will explained. Shirley then raised her hand cheerfully.

"Oh, don't worry about a thing. I can ask Nerifes to grant you the ability to breathe underwater for today. You'll probably need it for the festivities, too."

"Shirley...You have that kind of power?" Blanca inquired.

Shirley nodded and smiled. "Of course! I'm the Merines, after all!" Everyone smiled along with Shirley. With Nerifes's aid, they'd be able to travel deep underwater like one of the Ferines! Moments later, Shirley walked up to the darkened body of water. It may not have been the best place to try and contact Nerifes, but it was the party's only hope.

Shirley began to pray. As her thoughts focused on Nerifes, her hair glowed a radiant blue, that of which was known for her people. "O great will of the sea, Nerifes, grant these Orerines with the blessings of us Ferines on this holy day!" The moment Shirley finished her prayer, the party soon began to feel a strange wave of power in them.

"So this is what Nelly is really like..." Norma said as her mind began to flow with the knowledge of the Ferines. Soon, everyone's eyes began to close, and their thoughts grew calm. A last burst of power woke them up, and they soon discovered something unimaginable.

"My hair...It's glowin' blue! Jus' like a Radiant!" Moses commented, rubbing his head as he did so. Everyone looked at the color of their hair. It was the same color as a Merines's! Everyone stared in awe for a moment as the party looked at one another. Footsteps were soon heard as Maurits and Thyra sped over to see the commotion.

"Shirley, did you do this?" Thyra asked, looking around at the party's glowing hair.

"Another fine example of the Merines's power." Maurits exclaimed as he turned to Thyra. Shirley smiled and bowed at the two as if to thank them.

The elder continued, "I suppose this means that you'll be going in the water. Do be careful out there. We wouldn't want you getting hurt on this holy day!" As he finished speaking, Thyra ran over to Shirley and whispered a something in her ear.

"Shirley...when you're done, and the water's clear again, do you think I could talk to you? It's been a while, after all." Shirley nodded and smiled. When the whispers stopped, Shirley noticed everyone on the lakeside, preparing to jump into the water. She, too, rushed to the borderline of land and water and ran towards Chloe, grabbing her hand as she stopped.

"I won't let go, okay, C?" Shirley whispered.

"S-Sure. Thank you, Shirley," Chloe said while giving a slight smile. As soon as that was said, everyone prepared to dive in, their faces eager and anxious at the same time.

"Let's go!" Senel yelled, and everyone dove into the water. On Chloe's descent, everything was slow. The moment she felt the water, her eyes shut tightly until she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Miss Chloe, are you alright? You seem nervous..." The voice said. Upon hearing the voice, Chloe slowly opened her eyes to see Blanca treading underwater next to her in the murky darkness of Shadow's waters. Chloe still felt the Shirley's grip on her hand, but now Blanca was doing the same on her free hand.

"Come on, the others are going to leave us behind if we don't catch up!" Chloe turned her head to see the faint image of Shirley in the water, motioning for both of the swordweilders to follow her. The two of them did as Shirley said, and they all began to swim in the dark water, watching carefully that no one was separated. Moments later, the three girls were able to see each other close together, and even sooner, the group came into their view. The girls on the outside began to kick their legs to swim forward as Chloe watched, wondering how the two were moving so fast underwater.

When the trio met up with the party, Jay was seen, swimming toward the edge. As he noticed them, he turned to them and asked, "Did you three find anything?"

"No, nothing yet," Blanca answered. Jay then noticed the two girls holding onto Chloe's hands.

"Ah, so I see you're taking advantage, Chloe? You know, Blanca, Chloe can't--"

"Shut up!" Chloe began, "They were just helping me, that's all."

"Jay, it's not nice to say things like that. I'm sure Chloe doesn't want anyone to know she can't swim, and--Aah!" Shirley covered her mouth before she could finish. She then turned her head toward Chloe, whose eyes were, surprisingly, happy.

"Don't worry, Shirley. I know you didn't mean it, unlike Jay," Chloe responded.

Shirley then apologized for the trouble, but Chloe really didn't mind. Besides, the water was getting too murky to notice what the girls were saying. Swimming toward the middle of the party, the three kept their eyes opened for the dark crystal ball.

As the search continued, seconds turned to minutes, and those minutes soon turned to an hour. Everyone was beginning to tire of the darkened lake. Norma knew that everyone was beginning to get impatient, so she began to attempt to lighten the mood.

"Oh, uhh! Hey, guys! ...Why DIDN'T the Peepit cross the road?"

For seconds, everyone stayed silent and glared at Norma. Norma shrugged and swam up to Moses. "Well, Red? Whaddya think?"

"You ate it, Bubbles," Moses said blankly. Everyone then gave their strange looks to Moses, and he, as well as Norma, began to shrug.

"When you're with Bubbles, you start to figure out what she's gonna do," the bandit explained to the party. Everyone gave a confused nod. Norma's head drooped down and gave Moses 'The Look'. The party soon swam on, but not for long. In moments, an odd sound echoed through the emptiness.

"That call...No, it couldn't be..." Will whispered to himself. Chloe was able to tell what he was saying.

"What do you think it could be, Raynard?" Chloe questioned. Senel, as well, had tried to replay the call in his head. He had known he'd heard it somewhere, but where?

"It does sound familiar," Senel began as he thought some more, "But the only thing that would sound like THAT is a..." Senel didn't even have to finish, for seconds later, the source of the call swam closer and closer, and the shape was unmistakable to everyone.

"A Gaet!" Everyone shouted.

"Wh-Why is it here?" Shirley asked frantically.

"I'm not sure, but it looks like we're going to have to fight it!" Senel proclaimed.

Everyone nodded, and upon the Dark Sea Gaet's contact, the battle began.

Senel began the battle by throwing a Double Demon Fist, but the darkness of the water made the Demon Fang useless. The marine then tried to throw the Sea Gaet from the tail, but it soon found Senel and attempted to swallow him whole. He was able to swim away from the mouth of the beast, but nevertheless, he took damage from the bite of the Gaet's razor-sharp teeth.

"Hmm...Iron Eres doesn't even work? Well, then, try this on for size! INDIG--"

"Norma, stop! You'll kill us all!" Will yelled, "The lightning wouldn't just flow to the Gaet, but all of us, as well!"

Chloe watched the battle, unable to do anything but think about the party's next move with the little time they had. She thought about anything that could help the party, but nothing came to mind until she remembered the battle with Celsius.

"Blanca! How about using that protection eres to help us?" She asked the young girl who held her hand.

"H-How?"

"If you use that, then we'll all be protected from the lightning! That way, all of the Crystal Erens can cast a lightning spell without having to worry about being hurt."

"Alright...I guess I can try it! Everyone, when there's a barrier around you and you're a Crystal Eren, cast the most powerful lightning spell you have!" Blanca yelled, the call echoing through the water.

"HOLY WALL!" Blanca screamed through the echoes. Instantly, a rainbow barrier surrounded the party, and the three Crystal Erens casted their best lightning spell, Indignation, as fast as they could. Chanting their spells, a yellow flash of electricity flashed all around them, doing no harm because of the protective barrier. Soon, the electricity grew more powerful as the three were finishing their chants, and then...

"INDIGNATION!" The erens yelled, lightning aiming straight toward the Sea Gaet. The lightning created a blinding flash when it hit its target, and everyone's eyes closed quickly when the light reached their eyes. When Senel opened his eyes, he noticed the Gaet was falling down into the depths of the lake, bringing something with it under one of its fins. He swam down closer to the victim of a triple Indignation, and noticed the Gaet holding the Dark Orb in the fin! He quickly kicked his legs behind him to obtain the Orb, and that he did. He took the Orb in both of his hands, and swam back up to the party.

"Is that what we're looking for, Coolidge?" Chloe asked the marine.

"I guess so. It looks just like the 'Dark Orb' that Shadow described to us," Senel responded.

"Does that mean we can go back now? I'm getting so tired of this water..." Norma complained.

"Norma, have you ever been patient once in your life?" Jay asked, a sense of sarcasm in his voice.

"Of course I have, JJ! Just not...in the water. My skin'll get all pruny!" Everyone sighed, but they all knew it was true. Although, it didn't seem to affect Shirley at all, as she was still as cheery as she was when she dove into the water.

"Don't worry!" Shirley chirped, "All we have to do is swim back up, and then we can start the festival!" Her smile, though, was soon broken by the disturbance in the recently calm waters.

"Wait...What's the Orb doing now?" Blanca pointed to Shadow's Orb, now escaping from Senel's hands. It soon rose up a few feet from the party, and began to glow with a dark light.

"No! It's releasing all of its power now that it's in our grasp!" Will yelled, pointing to the orb as he did so.

"What're we gonna do!" Moses asked.

"We need to put our hands on it so it knows that we're its masters! Everyone, quick!" Everyone nodded, and the party swam toward the orb and held out their hands to touch the orb before its power went berserk. When everyone's hands were on the orb, a warm, white light shined out of the Orb, much to the party's surprise. For Blanca, the light enveloped her and she was forced into a vision of one of her memories.

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A muscular looking man and a petit woman in purple clothing came up to a small Blanca, perhaps 3 or 4 years old. She was lost, and she was crying. The white gown she wore was covered with dirt. The man knelt down and sang a loud song to her, but she began to cry.

"Aaaah! Mama! Papa!"

"What's wrong with her, Curtis?"

"I'm not sure, Isabella. I'm afraid...she doesn't like to sing," The man paused for a moment as the woman gasped. "Where are her parents, anyway?"

The little girl's mother recognized the sound of her daughter's crying. She picked the toddler up. Blanca watched from afar as the mother calmed her child down.

"Don't worry, Blanca...They were only trying to help you! See?" The small Blanca held on tighter to her mother.

"B-But he's scary, Mama!"

Blanca ran up to her mother and tried to talk to her, "Who are they, Mama? Was I scared of them? Am I still scared of them?" Blanca's question was ignored. All her mother did was apologize to the couple.

"Sorry, you two. I'm afraid she doesn't like loud things," Her mother explained.

"Do not fear, sister! The Bantam Bouncers will live on!"

Blanca then rushed up to the young couple and asked, "Wait, who did you say you were!" Nothing else was heard. The scene of a fountain plaza shattered into pieces, like a mirror that had hit the ground. The people were also breaking into shards. All that was left for Blanca was the white light that took her back to the real present.

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"Yo, Whitey! Get up! We need you to give Smokey that Orb!" Norma yelled. Blanca felt a light kick on her side, and her eyes soon opened.

"O-Oh! Sorry..." Blanca apologized. Getting up onto her feet again, Blanca then noticed where she was. She was right in front of Shadow, the orb placed next to her.

"Please take your Dark Orb, Shadow, and give the lake its blue color again," Blanca said while she bowed in respect. Almost instantly, the purple and black orb levitated from the ground. Shadow reached his hands out, and the orb left its place in midair, falling into Shadow's hands.

"Thank you...Memory?" The great spirit asked, his purple and black hand pointing toward Blanca.

"Yes, I got some of it back, thank you very much, Shadow," the young girl said, remembering the man, the woman, her mother, and herself in the fountain plaza.

"Excellent...Goodbye..." The spirit made a slight bow at Blanca and the party behind her. Everyone returned the bow, as well, in respect, and the spirit was gone. He disappeared faster than he had arrived. Seconds later, running footsteps were heard from afar, but they became louder with each passing step. Upon the party's notice, it was Thyra, who seemed to be in a hurry.

"Shirley! Everyone! The water!" No one had to guess what that meant. Before Thyra had finished, the party was already on their way to the lake. When they arrived, they couldn't believe their eyes. The water was back to its shining blue color, similar to the party's hair color. Except...With every passing second, the water seemed to appear brighter and clearer. If any newcomers were to travel to the Ferines Village for the festival, they wouldn't even have the slightest guess of what may have happened to the lake.

"It's so beautiful..." Shirley murmured under her breath, obviously stricken with awe. She had never seen the lake like this before. Shirley then felt a hand on her shoulder. On contact, she turned her head to find Maurits, with a proud and rejuvenated expression.

"Merines, everyone, you have done a wonderful job. Our village owes you a debt of gratitude. Would you all follow me so we can begin the festival?" The village elder asked, his face still booming with pride.

"Of course. We'd be honored," Will replied as he began to walk toward the village with Maurits in front of him. Everyone, as well, walked with them, and the festival would soon begin.

As the party entered through the gates of the Ferines Village, it, too, seemed almost brighter than ever. Ferines children ran around in circles, playing games off of the pathway, while men and women marched toward the open place in the village, where anyone could freely jump into the water. Decorations were placed on buildings, some in Relares, and some not, but either way, it didn't darken the moods of anyone one bit. Upon entering the small plaza, a small platform with stairs in the middle sat in what would have been a large, empty path without it. Maurits walked up to the center of the platform, the party soon following. When he commanded the civilians' attention, he began to speak.

"Ferines! It is time to celebrate the coming of the Legacy to our people! For the many that have been sacrificed in war, and to our people who remain now! We would not be having this festival without the help of our Merines and her friends. Please, give her and her comrades a round of applause!"

The civilians in the audience gave the party a roar of applause that lasted for a minute. Whistles, cheers, and applause filled the air with happiness. As the applause died down, Maurits commanded a second more of silence.

"Now, we shall have the Merines announce the start of our festival!" Maurits yelled. By the time Shirley was up, the audience was silent. The only thing that was heard was the uncommon gust of wind, and the water's splash against the floating town.

"Let the festivities begin, everyone!" Shirley yelled with a smile. From that moment, the blonde hair color of the Ferines civiliansturned a shining blue, just like the party's. They soon began to dive into the waters of the clear blue lake, their hair making the lake even brighter as they descended down into the water. Shirley, as well, ran down the stairs, Thyra at the bottom, and the two dove into the water together.

"Hooray! Let's go in the water, everyone!" Blanca said as she pointed to the water.

Everyone except for Chloe nodded, and almost all of them dove in like the others. Chloe, on the other hand, only decided to take her boots off and keep her feet in the water. She watched as all of the people, including the party, swam in delight, celebrating the coming of the Ferines on the Legacy.

"My hair's still glowing...I could try going in, but...I'd probably drown," Chloe thought, saddened by her inability to swim. She'd always wish to be able to swim, but she was just never taught after the death of her parents. Chloe just remained seated, thinking of how much fun everyone must've been having underwater, having the once-in-a-lifetime chance to actually _breathe underwater_. During her thoughts, she noticed a glowing patch of water get closer and closer to her. Moments later, Senel's head popped up from the water.

"Chloe, aren't you going to go in the water? If you can't swim, I can hold your hand in the water," the marine told her.

"Thanks for the offer, Coolidge, but...I think I'll stay here," Chloe replied. She was glad that Senel was offering, but her weakness would make the Ferines, and perhaps her friends, think little of her. At the response, Senel put both hands on the empty patch of ground next to Chloe and pushed himself up. He then turned around and sat down.

"Do you mind if I stay here with you?" Senel asked Chloe, her face somewhat blushing.

"No, not at all. I'd enjoy your company, Senel," the knight responded. Everything stayed silent for a while, until Chloe could find something else to say.

"You know, you don't have to stay here with me...Wouldn't you rather be with Shirley?" Chloe asked, her face red.

"Well, I wanted to be here. That's why I came up to see you," Senel began as his thought changed to something else, "These Ferines have really interesting traditions. Since I've been with them so long, though, it just seems so normal."

"I suppose so, but I guess I can't really say the same. What kinds of traditions do the Radiant have, Coolidge?"

"Well, there's the Rite of Accession for the Merines, The Rite of Relares, The day of a Teriques, and then there's..." Senel paused, knowing only one Ferines tradition left.

"There's what?" Chloe questioned.

"The Rite of Feriyen."

"What would that be?"

"It's the Ferines way of a marriage proposal. Apparently, the man dives into the water, and the woman he loves chases after him. The other way around is supposedly fine, too. When they find each other, they embrace in the water, and if the sea glows around you, it's proof that your marriage will be blessed. Stella once told me that it was for Ferines and Orerines," Senel explained. For some reason, something in his heart made him feel nervous when he told this to Chloe, but what?

"I see..." Chloe began, her heart racing as she thought of something, "C-Could I ask you something?"

"Of course," the marine said, smiling.

"Did...Did you and Shirley...When the water glowed at the Wings of Light..." Chloe trailed off. Her heart sank, and tears were about to form in her eyes.

"Yeah, but soon after, I told Shirley there was no way we could have been together like that from what we'd been through. I guess I never told you. That was why we decided to live apart. But...I know one thing. I know that I'll have to ask 'that person' to perform the Rite of Feriyen with me someday...If I can just stop grieving over Stella.."

Chloe then put her hand on Senel's shoulder and said, "I promise. I know there's someone...who would." Just then, she remembered the dream she had at the caves. She fell into the water, and Senel saved her, but could it really be...?

"Thanks, Chloe," Senel said, his voice filled with a sense of rejuvenation. Before he could say anything else, Norma's head popped out of the water.

"Hey, you two! Shirl said the festival's over! You missed everything! What were you doing, anyways?"

"We were just talking, Norma," Chloe said, rather annoyed. Seconds later, Moses' head rose above the water.

"Well, looks like everythin's done here. I probably won't have a good time underwater like that again fer a while, I'm sure," Moses commented. The two then rose up from the water and got back on the ground again. When their hands touched earth, though, their radiant-blue hair faded back to its original colors. Every one of the party soon discovered the same as they made their way back on land.

"This was really fun, Miss Shirley! I can't wait to tell my Mama and Papa!" Blanca cheered as everyone got out, dripping wet from the swimming.

"Yes, I look forward to next year, as well," Will replied. Everyone nodded in agreement. As everyone walked out to the gates of the village, both Maurits and Thyra awaited the party's arrival.

"We thank you kindly for coming to our festival. This was an excellent example of cooperation between Ferines and Orerines," Maurits said. Thyra nodded.

"Yes. I feel I know you all much more than I used to...I guess I should apologize for being rude to you in the past..." Thyra explained.

"There's no need to," Senel began, "We know how you feel about it. It was probably hard for you to move on to the future."

"Thank you, Senel, and everyone. Have a safe trip home..." Thyra said. Everyone thanked both Maurits and Thyra, and the party was off. As they walked, they looked back and waved the sun setting over the village. With another Summon Spirit with its treasure returned, Blanca was getting even closer to recovering her full memory. Now, there are only two Summon Spirits left!

* * *

Ugh…I kind of got lazy near the end, but I hope you enjoyed it! I worked really hard on it, so, uh…Please review? I'd love to know what you thought about it, so comments, criticism, anything, I'd love to hear it! Oh, and look! I made a skit for you guys! Beware of OoCness! XD 

Blanca's in front of a toaster. Senel's right behind her.

Blanca: "I don't get it."

Senel: "What's wrong, Blanca?"

Blanca: Why is there a toaster here? We don't need one where we are."

Senel: "…Where are we, anyway?"

Blanca: "In the center of team MelFes's imagination, perhaps?"

Senel: …Who?

Blanca: "Never mind. I'm taking this toaster with me for interrogation."


	7. Chapter 6

Aaah! Eep, I'm so sorry it took so long to get this chapter done! I'll explain at the end of the chapter, okay? O.o; But, aside from that, please enjoy chapter six!

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CHAPTER SIX

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After the ordeal of Ferines Day, everyone was able to safely return to town for a good night's rest. The party split up, and each one of them were able to sleep well. Even Chloe, who had to face her fear by going underwater, was able to sleep well.

As night passed, day soon followed. The sun had woken up from its sleep, and was now slowly rising into the sky. In the house of Senel Coolidge, the only sounds that were heard were the sounds of Blanca getting up from the couch. She looked up at the bodies of Senel and Chloe, both in a deep sleep. Tiptoeing out of the house, Blanca slowly opened the door, and did the same as she closed it, trying not to wake up the marine or the knight.

When outside, the swordsgirl noticed the hustle and bustle of the travelers had returned. Merchants, followed by their carts, sold many items, and sold them for early morning deals. Blanca knew she couldn't buy any of these items, so she began to walk to the small dock that sat a few yards away from Senel's house. Brushing the back of her dress off, she sat down and sighed.

"This is taking too long..." Blanca thought to herself, "I like everything here, but I'd rather be at home, playing outside with Hunter. Although this journey'll make great stories to tell, that's for sure." Moments later, she smelled something in the air. It smelled of bacon and eggs. Blanca recognized the smell immediately and ran back into the house, quickly opening the door to find Senel and Chloe already up, Chloe at the table, and Senel making breakfast.

"Blanca? Where were you?" Chloe asked.

"Oh, me? I was just sitting outside for some fresh air. How come Mr. Senel's cooking?" At this, Senel turned around, a frying pan in his left hand and an apron on him.

"What? Am I not allowed to cook this early in the morning?" The marine asked, his voice somewhat groggy.

"No, it's not that!" Blanca chuckled, "I'll try your food and see how it compares to Miss Chloe's." The little girl then sat down across from Chloe and lay her head down on the table. She wanted to fall asleep, but Chloe had something to ask.

"Blanca, you said you'd gained a part of your memory yesterday, right? Could I ask what it was?"

"Oh, right!" Blanca began, "I think it was my worst fear...I was only about 3 years old, and this large man and woman wearing purple clothes came up to me while I was lost and sang to me loudly. I was crying and then...Mama comforted me and told them I didn't like to sing. They said something like...'The Bantam Bouncers will live on'..." Senel began to laugh as he heard Blanca's fear.

"Wait a minute, the Bantam Bouncers? You're afraid of them?" Chloe asked.

"I could see why," Senel added, "Those Bouncers wouldn't do any good trying to entertain little kids." He took the frying pan off of the top of the cooking range, while putting the bacon and eggs on a large plate. Blanca took her head off the table as it was set, and breakfast between the three soon began. When Blanca took her first bite of the food, she smiled.

"Wow, Mr. Senel, this is really good!" Blanca commented.

"Coolidge, you should cook more often with food like this," Chloe added. Senel gave a slight smile and sat down at the table with his own food on his plate. He, too, took a bite and enjoyed it. During breakfast, Blanca thought about where the party would go next.

"Um, Mr. Senel, where will we be going today? I'm not exactly sure where the other two Summon Sprits are located," She explained. Senel swallowed the food he had in his mouth and began to think.

"I guess we could go to the Waterways to find Efreet. I'm pretty sure that's where the seed was planted," Senel said. At that, Chloe nodded.

"Yes, that's where Efreet should be," the knight began, "I'll go tell the others."

She stood up from the table, took her plate, put it in the kitchen, and ran out the door to inform everyone of the coming day's plans. As Senel kept eating, Blanca put her plate in the sink on top of the plate that Chloe had put down. She then went back to the couch and took the ribbon she had received from Gnome hidden under the cushion. Tying it on the back of her head, the young girl tightened it one last time until it was fully tightened on the back of her head. Also on the side of the couch was her Angel's Tear sword, and she took that, as well. Looking back at the table, she noticed Senel, who was still eating.

"Mr. Senel, I think you're eating too slow..." Blanca commented.

"...That would be Chloe's fault. Her habits must be rubbing off on me," Senel replied while he shrugged. Upon hearing Blanca's comment, the marine also placed his plate on the small pile of two, now adding it to three.

"That reminds me...How long has Miss Chloe been living with you now?"

"I guess it's been a month by now," the marine said, his head turned to Blanca as he explained.

"I see..." the swordsgirl began, "If I may ask, why'd she move in with you?" Before Senel could answer, the door opened, revealing the party, all ready for another journey on the Legacy. Norma ran up to the front, ready to give one of her 'Pep-Rallies'

"Alright, guys, what're we gonna do today?" Norma asked the party enthusiastically. There was silence for a few moments, and only Jay dared to break it.

"Norma, we know where we're going. Stop making a fool of yourself and let's go," the ninja said blankly. Norma grew furious at his comment.

"JJ, you just don't know how to have fun! C'mon! This is the Waterways we're talking about! Don't you remember all of those good times...?"

"Like almost drowning...?" Chloe murmured under her breath. Nothing else was heard, and Norma just sighed.

"Geez, you guys are SO boring! Let's just go..." Norma slouched down while she walked out the door, knowing that the party was filled with serious people. Everyone followed her, and the group was off to the duct leading straight to the Waterways.

As the party made their entrance to the Waterways, everything was just like before. It had seemed that nothing else had changed, so they decided to take the main route. While walking to the main corridor, Will noticed something under the main paths.

"Everyone, look below us!" Will yelled. When everyone heard that, they quickly ran to the edge of their pathway. Instead of the blue water that usually flowed through the Waterways, fire enveloped the bottom corridors.

"Efreet's treasure must be somewhere along the main path if it's reaching the bottoms of the Waterways..." Shirley began, "Walter told me when we were here that all of the water comes from the main path, so maybe that's where the fire's coming from!"

"That theory sounds reasonable enough to me," Will said in response to Shirley.

Knowing that the main waterway wasn't too far from the path they were already on, he gestured everyone to follow him. Everyone nodded and headed for the main waterway.

As she ran, Blanca began to feel a cold chill run down her spine, despite the blazing heat of Efreet's power. She didn't exactly know why, but she soon found her answer once her head began to hurt. She felt something rushing to her mind, although she couldn't exactly see (Or think) what it was.

_'It feels like it's one of my memories, but...It isn't like the others,_' the swordsgirl thought, her mind still only focused on her so-called 'memory' as she ran. For now, though, Blanca brushed it off, hoping that the feeling would pass. Soon after, her eyes focused back on the party, whom she had almost lost. Quickly, Blanca caught up with the party, keeping her feeling hidden.

"'Ere it is!" Moses pointed. Everyone turned their heads toward where Moses pointed and stared in awe. What they saw was the same old waterway, but instead of water flowing through the main path, fire took its place and flowed in any direction it could take.

"At this rate, the fire's gonna burn up the whole place! What're we gonna do, JJ?" Norma asked, turning her head to Jay.

"I'm thinking about it," Jay began, "But the only thing we could try doing is changing the switch back to water."

"Easy, then! I'll just hit it with some magic and--"

"It's not going to be that easy, Norma," Will began, "That fire could absorb almost any kind of magic besides water, and I doubt you have any water eres." With that, Norma's head drooped down and she sighed. She knew she hated not being part of the plan, and according to Will, she probably wouldn't be part of the plan.

Just then, Shirley thought of an idea. She looked toward everyone and said, "I can try hitting it with a Tidal Wave. If we do that, then we'll have just enough time to get to the switch." Everyone nodded. That idea was probably the only thing they would be able to do.

"Good idea, Shirley," Senel replied. Everyone else nodded, and Jay decided to put his say in the matter.

"Yes, it's probably the best we're going to get. Shirley, when you cast Tidal Wave, we'll run to the switch and flip it back to its original state. Once that happens, we'll swim to the deepest part of the Waterways through there and get to Efreet."

"Sw-Swim! Not again..." Chloe muttered under her breath. It was barely audible to anyone, but Jay picked up her voice and replied, "Yes, Chloe, we're going to have to swim. If you don't like it, you can stay at the entrance and wait for us." At this, Chloe tightened her hand into a fist, but she knew she had to at least try to swim.

"Alright then, Shirley, whenever you're ready, start casting," Senel said. Shirley nodded, and immediately began her casting. As her chanting continued, her Angelic Quill began to light up, shining as the spell became closer and closer to being released.

"Tidal Wave!" Shirley yelled. As soon as that was said, three large blasts of water shot up from under the switch where the fire was being released. While it faded, everyone ran to the switch to try and push it in the other direction. With all of their strength combined, the switch slowly moved from right to left, the door that it controlled slowly opening, as well. As the switch reached as far left as it could go, the door that contained the water was fully open. Water shot out from the opening, and it soon enveloped everything around it, including the party. Quickly, they swam past the large cage-like gate before it closed before the current pushed it back down to stop the water.

As the water's currents pushed at Blanca, she took a deep breath and dove under the water, thinking that perhaps Efreet's treasure may be under where she swam. Pushing the water away with her hands, she began to move along with the current, her eyes shifting from one side to the other, looking for a treasure of any sort. When the young girl grew short of air, her head broke through the border of water and air. Looking around as she swam, she saw that no one was around her. Knowing that she could swim faster under the water, she took another deep breath and plunged underwater. Looking at her surroundings underwater, Blanca noticed something lying on the floor. On closer inspection, she noticed that it wasn't a something, but a _someone_.

_'Miss Chloe! No! She can't swim!_' Blanca thought. She turned against the current and pushed against the flow, trying to get to the floor. The salt from the amount of seawater burned the swordsgirl's eyes, but she knew she couldn't let Chloe die. Pushing the water away as she swam, Blanca was able to grab Chloe's hand. Blanca held on tight to Chloe's hand and turned back with the current. She soon headed for the closest staircase on the path, hoping that she would be able to find the party.

As the young girl ascended the stairs, Chloe's body dragged behind her. Blanca turned her head to Chloe's body, but she was still unconscious.

"I don't know how much you weigh, Miss Chloe, but I have to take you someplace safer," Blanca whispered to herself. Slowly, she attempted to pick up Chloe. Grunting and groaning, she began to walk, Chloe in her arms. As Blanca switched her gaze to in front of her, she noticed a large door a few yards away. Without dropping Chloe, the young girl walked as fast as she could to see what was behind the door. Making her steps to be directly in front of it, Blanca turned her head up towards the door and watched it open before her eyes. Behind the door lay a hidden room with no monsters, so Blanca decided to stay there until Chloe woke up or the party was found.

Putting Chloe's body down on the floor, Blanca began to pant. She'd never carried anything as heavy as a person before! Sitting down a few feet from the knight, Blanca wrung the edges of her clothes to rid the weight of the lingering water on her. She then curled herself into a ball, hoping and praying that Chloe wasn't dead.

About ten minutes later, Chloe's eyes slowly began to open as she coughed, still short of air. Noticing that she was on land, she slowly got up and looked around at her surroundings.

_'This must be the secret room...'_ She thought. She then heard a crying sound coming from behind her. Turning her head, she noticed Blanca, facing the wall, all curled up, and crying. Slowly, Chloe walked toward the crying girl, putting a hand on her shoulder. Upon contact, Blanca turned her head, and her eyes widened.

"Miss Chloe!" Blanca said, trying to hold back tears, "You're alive!" At this, Blanca stood up from where she was and gave Chloe a hug. Holding back the tears no longer, Blanca began to cry again, but she was happy.

"I-I thought you were--When I saw you and I tried to bring you back on land, you were--" Chloe tried to understand what Blanca was saying, but her crying made it hard to tell exactly what she said. The knight patted the little girl's head, trying to comfort her.

"Blanca...Were you the one that saved me?" Chloe asked. Blanca let go of Chloe and nodded, trying to clear her face of any tears.

"Y-yeah. I was swimming, and I couldn't find anyone, so I tried going underwater and found you on the floor, I took you here because it was safe." The young girl explained.

"I see. I do remember trying to swim, and then...everything just went dark." The knight said, remembering when she tried running from the water, but it was to no avail. She was swallowed up, and she tried flailing her arms around to swim, but then helplessly fell to the bottom.

"Well I'm glad you're okay...I guess if you're up, then that means we can try to find everyone, right?" Blanca turned her head to Chloe and asked.

"Yes, let's go," Chloe nodded. Before she could say anything else, though, she smiled at Blanca and said, "Thanks, Blanca." The young girl smiled back and nodded, as if to say 'You're welcome'. She didn't know why, but hearing Chloe thank her made her feel...important. Turning back to the door which led back to the Waterways, Blanca saw something that caught her eye. Running to where it was, she noticed a small, red gem on the ground. As she picked it up, she felt a warmth envelop her. On closer inspection of it, she saw a fire burning inside the crystal. When she saw it, she ran toward where Chloe was and showed it to her.

"Miss Chloe! I think I found Efreet's treasure!" The young girl said with excitement as she ran up to the knight. Taking the gem from Blanca's open hand, Chloe inspected it for a few seconds and nodded.

"It does look like it would belong to him," Chloe began, "Maybe we can go to him and see if it is, indeed, his. I'm sure the others might be there, as well."

"Yeah! Let's go, then!" Blanca cheered as she began to run toward the deepest part of the Waterways. Chloe smiled at the enthusiasm of the girl and followed her, running in Blanca's direction.

About five minutes later, both Blanca and Chloe stopped running and began to walk at their own pace. Although the two stayed silent for a while, their minds still thought of recent events. While walking, the chill that Blanca had felt earlier had come back, and this time, stronger than last time. Her head began to ache even worse, and this time, she couldn't try to ignore it. The young girl suddenly stopped walking as she clutched her head in pain. Seeing that Blanca had stopped walking, Chloe turned to her to see what the matter was.

"Blanca, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Chloe asked.

"Yeah, I think I'm getting another one of my memories back. But, it hurts for some reason..." Blanca explained, her voice quivering.

"Do you need to rest?" Chloe asked, somewhat worried.

"No," Blanca answered as she smiled, "I think I'll be okay for now." With that said, Blanca slowly let go of her head and began walking again, although the feeling still haunted her a small amount. Chloe shrugged, but followed the girl to where Efreet lived.

Moments later, Blanca noticed a red light shining a few yards away. When she noticed it, she pointed to it and said, "Look! Miss Chloe, over there! I think that's Efreet!" Chloe turned her gaze to the light.

"It looks like everyone's there, too. Let's go, Blanca," Chloe explained. Blanca nodded, and the two rushed over to the deepest corridor, their hopes up.

As they reached the deepest room, everyone stood in front of Efreet, perhaps having a word with the summon spirit. When Chloe and Blanca reached the party, Senel was the first to say something.

"Where were you two? We were looking for you." The marine questioned.

"We had a little trouble getting here, is all. Nothing too dangerous, I guess," Blanca told him, trying to hide what had really happened.

"Okay. Well, we've been looking for Efreet's treasure, but we can't seem to find it. Have you two seen it at all?" Senel asked.

"As a matter of fact, we did. Is this it?" Chloe said, turning her head toward Blanca. Blanca quickly took the small, red gem out of her pocket. Everyone turned around once they saw that Blanca had the gem.

"Well, wouldja lookit that! It's that gem Efreet was talkin' 'bout!" Moses exclaimed. Norma pushed through Moses to see what it looked like.

"Wow! That's awesome! Go on and give it to 'Freet, Whitey!" Norma added, her eyes widened.

"Yes, please do. After we switched the water back from the switch, Efreet grew weak, and he needs the gem," Will also commented. Blanca nodded at Will and soon walked closer to the floating Summon Spirit.

"H-Here is your treasure, Efreet. With this, you should feel stronger again," Blanca explained as she kneeled down in her praying position.

"Thank you, young one. If I may ask, have you been feeling any pain?" The spirit asked the young girl.

"Ah...Yes, sir. Do you know why?"

"It's the memory that you're about to regain. It's the reason why you left your home, although you may not be able to take it."

"I need it, though, whether it's good or bad. Please, Efreet." Blanca pleaded to the Summon spirit.

"Alright...I'll give it to you now, then, rather then you go where you need to."

Efreet did as he said, and a small, white light floated in the palms of his hands. Seconds later, the light turned to Blanca and sped toward her, soon wrapping her in the light.

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_Blanca's parents and herself stood in front of her, all three faces looking angry. Blanca's father began to yell at the girl, as the real Blanca backed up at his voice._

_"What did you think you were doing? You could have killed yourself in the Quiet Lands if you were all alone!" The man roared at his daughter, the girl about to burst into tears._

_"B-But I was just trying to--" The girl muttered._

_"Trying to what? Train yourself alone?" Blanca's mother yelled, "Blanca, stop trying to get yourself killed! We were worried about you, and you say absolutely nothing!" At her mother's words, the little girl broke down crying, her parents taking no sympathy from her tears._

_"You don't understand at all! I was just--I was just trying to get you two THIS! __I...I wanted you two to be proud of me!" The illusion of Blanca took a beautiful, crystallized silver rose out of her pocket and showed the two. She then threw it on the ground and ran to her room, shutting the door as she did so. The real Blanca quickly opened the door to her room, not attracting her parents' attention. She found herself in her room, crying._

_"I was only trying to keep them in love...Is that bad at all for a married couple?" __The illusion Blanca asked herself. She turned toward the window next to her bed and opened it. She scribbled a small note on a piece of paper, left it on her bed and climbed out of the window slowly. As the illusion Blanca disappeared, the real Blanca ran towards the bed and read the note that was left there. It read:_

_"You two should be ashamed of yourselves! You call yourselves my parents, but you don't even listen to what I have to say! If you two won't listen, then I'm leaving. I'm sorry if it worries you, but if you can't even appreciate your present, then...forget it._

_Goodbye,_

_ Blanca."_

_After reading the note, Blanca broke down into tears. Were her parents as horrible as the note described? She began to back up, tears flowing down her face. Soon, all she could do was try to stop it._

_"Please...Somebody, make it stop! Please!" Blanca cried. To her surprise, the scenery before her shattered like a mirror, similar to the last memory she had regained, and all she saw was a white light. As it enveloped her, she heard her illusion self say something._

_"It was...A present for their anniversary...A Silver Rose."_

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When the young girl woke up from her memories, her eyes widened as tears rolled down her face. She felt petrified, as she felt that she couldn't move. The only thing that would move were her hands that twitched as she tried to say something. When Shirley noticed Blanca crying, she rushed to the young girl.

"Blanca? What happened? Did you get your memory back?" The Ferines girl asked. Blanca said nothing as her eyes closed and she fell down, falling unconscious. Shirley gasped in horror.

"I knew it," Efreet said, his head shaking is disappointment.

"What happened to her...?" Chloe asked, her voice filled with worry.

"Well," Efreet began, "Her memories must have gotten the best of her. That memory was the reason why she ran away, and it was not a happy one. It appears that she tried to get her parents a present for their anniversary, although she had to go through peril to get to it."

"Wow...What was this present, anyways, 'Freet?" Norma asked the summon spirit. For an answer, he shook his head, most likely meaning that he didn't know. He then gave the party some advice.

"I suggest that you take this child where she's staying...She must have been suffering as she saw it. Take care of her," Efreet commented, but then faded back into a burning flower as he said one last thing before he left.

"Do not let the child go astray...She must do what time wants her to, and that is for her to return with a smile."

"Thank you, Efreet," Will whispered to himself as thanks to the summon spirit. He then turned to Senel and Chloe.

"You two, take care of her. According to Efreet, she may not even want to go back home if no one asks her about things." At Will's words, the two nodded in unison and agreed to take care of her.

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The day passed, and as night fell everyone returned to town, worn out and tired from all that swimming at the Waterways. Everyone could now go for a good night's rest, and hopefully, they'd be back up and ready for tomorrow's adventure. Senel and Chloe, on the other hand, had to make sure that Blanca was all right. Upon entering town, Chloe and Senel, with Blanca in his arms, went back to their home. As they entered, Senel carefully lay Blanca down on the couch as she stayed unconscious. He then sat down at the table, Chloe sitting across from him.

"Do you think she'll be alright, Coolidge?" Chloe asked the marine.

Senel nodded and replied, "I'm sure she'll be alright by tomorrow. I'm sure that just regaining a memory isn't going to kill her."

At the comment, Chloe shook her head and added, "She didn't just regain her memory, though. Apparently, she got lost in the Waterways after we flooded the main corridor. When she was swimming, she saw me underwater, almost dead. After she found me, she took me to the secret room until I woke up."

"She never told me that," Senel began, "She said that everything was fine."

"No, that wasn't that case at all. But...When I woke up, she was so glad to see that I was alright. I just hope she'll wake up tomorrow."

"Don't worry. If she's still not feeling well tomorrow, then we'll try to see if any Healing Eres works." Senel consoled.

"Yes, I guess that would be the best thing to do," Chloe began, then checked the time, "Ah, it's getting a bit late. I'm going to rest for tonight, I suppose. Good night, Coolidge."

"'Night, Chloe," Senel started, "I'll probably do the same in a bit." As Chloe left to go upstairs, Senel began to think.

'There's only one Summon Spirit left...If Blanca finds out who her parents are, maybe we could talk to them about her.' The marine thought. He was right; for there was only one summon Spirit left: Volt. If that was the case, then Blanca would be leaving very soon, but the question still remained: Why did she fall unconscious?

* * *

-Sigh- Man, that took a while! Sorry if it's a bit shorter than the other chapters, though. I guess that brings up another thing: If the next chapter is short, then don't worry. The last chapter, which I'm calling 'End of the Symphony', is going to be pretty long with the plans I have. Oh, yeah, and I guess I should tell you why I kind of went on hiatus: I was really tied up with camp. Before I stopped, Tech Week had just started, and if you're in theater, then you know how hectic that kind of stuff is. Oh, and the cast got sick. No, really! Look!

SKIT: We're Sick!

Me: Hey guys, c'mon, we gotta write chapter six today!

Senel: (Wrapped in a Blanket with Chloe, both of them shivering.) "Not today, May, we're all cough cough really sick. -sniffle-"

Chloe: "Coolidge, stop coughing on the blanket, you're going to get May sick."

-Norma walks in-

Norma: "Ugh, sorry, May-May. We're all sick like dogs today. Don't call us, we'll call you, 'kay?"

Chloe: "Yeah, even Blanca's sick."

Me: "What's she got?"

Chloe and Senel: "The flu."

-Blanca runs in, her face literally white and shivering, a blanket over her-

Blanca: Does anyone have any Advil? -sniffle- -cough-- faint-

Me: Oh my god. O.o;

Hehe, sorry for OOC-ness! That was just fun to do, is all. Anyways, please tell me how you like Chapter six, anything I can improve on, etc. Thank you so much again to all of my reviewers! You guys are awesome!


	8. Chapter 7

Woo! Finally, Chapter Seven is done. It took a while, but it's done. It may not be the best one, but it's got one of my favorite memories of Blanca that I made. Oh, and by the way, please check out my profile! The awesome SaoriWG has drawn pictures from scenes of Symphony of the Past! All of the credit goes to her, not me, okay? Ah, one more thing that I wanted to bring up. Someone reviewed saying that they thought Jay was going to be paired up with Blanca. Here's the story on that: I was going to actually make her pair up with Jay, but before I could get the fluffy stuff into my chapters, too many fanfics arrived where it was 'JayxOC' this or 'JayxOC' that. It got too clichéd, I guess. I didn't know so many people like Jay so much. O.o Although, you may see a bit of fluff between them every once in a while, so be on the lookout for the rest of this story! (Which isn't really that much…) Oh, well. Please enjoy chapter seven, okay?

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CHAPTER SEVEN

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The following morning in Werites Beacon, the sun had already risen as Chloe started waking up. Getting up off of the bed slowly, she tiptoed down the stairs, trying not to wake Senel or Blanca up, as the two were still fast asleep. Making her way to the ground floor, Chloe slowly opened the door while quietly leaving the house. As she closed the door, the knight walked toward a bench next to Senel's house and sat down, thinking about the recent things that were happening.

_'Blanca's probably going to be leaving soon...I wonder what life's like for her in her time. As of now we still don't even know how her parents treat her. From what she's told Coolidge and me, though, it seems like everything's normal for her, but...I suppose you can never tell from what happened to her yesterday..'_ A few moments later, Chloe heard the sound of an opening door, slowly creaking, as if the person opening it didn't want to be seen from where they were. Being who she was, Chloe turned her head from where she heard the sound.

"Blanca, it's you! Are you feeling better today?" Chloe asked in somewhat of a curious tone. The young girl's eyes widened as she heard her name being called, but slowly crept out of the house, making one final look into the house to check on any movements. When Blanca saw nothing suspicious, she quietly closed the door and smiled at Chloe, walking to the bench where Chloe sat. Blanca did the same as she sat down on the empty space on the bench next to the knight.

"Yes, I'm alright," Blanca began, "But my head still hurts a bit. I think it's from all of those memories from last night."

Chloe stared at the young girl quizzically, her head tilted as she said, "Memories? So, you were able to find more than just one?"

Blanca nodded and replied, "Yeah! I got a few memories, but most of them weren't exactly the best..."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Blanca," Chloe began, "That reminds me...We were told by Efreet about the memory you had gained right before you passed out. What exactly did you try getting for your parents that was so hard to find?"

"It was called a Silver Rose," Blanca simply replied, her expression monotonous from the question Chloe had asked.

"Sounds fitting for an anniversary present," Chloe added.

Blanca turned her head to Chloe and nodded. "It really was when I saw the description. You see, I have two friends named Hunter and Pandora, they're twins, and their mother was a renowned treasure hunter. She was the one who gave me the description that she found. From the description, it was said that the Silver Rose grew only in the deepest part of the Earth Monument, but if it was given to two people in love, it's said that the bond they share becomes unbreakable." Chloe wanted to know more, but before she could ask anymore about Blanca's memories, the door opened once again; this time, Senel came out of the house, rubbing his eyes. Blanca waved at Senel as he closed the door.

"Good morning, Mr. Senel!" Blanca began while she waved, "You're up early again today." Chloe turned her head immediately after hearing Blanca say Senel's name.

"I'm sure he has a reason for getting up so early," Chloe explained to the girl.

"Actually," Senel began, his voice a bit faded, "I was going to ask for breakfast." At Senel's words, Chloe sighed with a look on her face that said 'I knew it.'

"Alright, Coolidge, I'll make breakfast, then," The knight said. Senel thanked her, and he headed back into the house, now waiting for breakfast to be ready. Chloe then slowly got off of the bench, leaving only Blanca, and began walking towards the door. Upon taking a few steps, Chloe noticed that Blanca had still been sitting on the bench, her head looking up towards the sky.

"Blanca? Aren't you going to come in?" Chloe asked.

Turning her gaze back to the earth, the swordsgirl nodded and replied, "Yeah, I'll be right there, Miss Chloe." At Blanca's words, Chloe shrugged, but walked back into the house to make breakfast. As the knight closed the door, Blanca turned her head back to the sky.

"This place..." she whispered to herself "It looks so familiar, but..." Trailing off, Blanca's eyes shifted back to the garden that stood in front of her. She remembered playing in the small garden as a toddler, taking walks with her mother before the sun reached its peak in the morning. Before the young girl was completely entranced in her memories, though, she shook her head to wake herself up and quickly got up from the bench, running back into Senel's house before breakfast began.

As Blanca entered the house, she found Senel and Chloe both sitting down at the table, a piece of toast on each of their plates. Quickly, she walked to the the table where a plate with toast and butter sat. She sat down, filling the empty seat, and began to eat the toast. Her gaze was only focused on the table, as if something in her mind refused to look up at Senel and Chloe. Fighting it off for now, the young girl looked up at the two.

"I-I'm sorry it took so long, you two. For some reason, I didn't feel like moving from the spot I was in." Blanca apologized, still trying to fight that feeling in her mind.

"Don't worry," Senel began, "We know you've been going through a lot." At the words of the marine, the feeling in Blanca's mind had broken, letting the girl's eyes travel freely once again. She smiled at Senel, and then proceeded to eat her toast. As she took her last bite, and only crumbs remained on the plate, she put the plate in the sink to be washed later in the night, when the three returned home. Seeing that Senel and Chloe were still finishing their breakfast, Blanca offered to go get the others for their final journey to see that last summon spirit: Volt.

"We'll be waiting here, then," Chloe said, answering the offer. Blanca then nodded and ran out the door rather quickly, leaving Senel and Chloe to their toast.

"She seemed to be in quite a hurry," Chloe commented as she, too, put her plate in the sink.

"She probably wants her whole memory back. After tomorrow, we have to send her back to her time." Senel replied, still eating his toast. Chloe nodded in agreement. As Senel put his plate back in the sink, there was an eerie quiet between both Senel and Chloe for a few moments. Noticing that Norma's shoeprints were still on the table, Senel took a rag from the sink and tried to rub it off, while Chloe sat on the couch behind him. Even then, silence ensued, until Chloe dared to break it, her face beginning to blush.

"Uhm, Sen--" Before she could say anything else, though, Chloe was interrupted by the sound of a door banging open, revealing Blanca and the party, ready for their final summon spirit encounter. Norma, as usual, ran in front of everyone and started to climb to the table, but before she could, Senel glared at her coldly and said, "Norma, don't even think about it. I just cleaned that thing of your shoeprints."

"Geez, Senny, I didn't know you had and obsession with cleaning," Norma whined as she turned her head to Senel, climbed down from where she was about to rise and put her feet back on the ground.

"I don't," the marine simply replied. Norma squinted her eyes at him, but turned around back to the group to give her pep-rally without the help of Senel's table.

"Okay, Fun Bunch! What're we gonna do today!" The treasure hunter then turned to Jay and added, "And no being mean, JJ!" Jay shrugged, but played along with Norma's game and reviewed their plans.

"First, we find Volt and ask him where his treasure is. Following that, we'll search in that designated area and, when retrieved, give the treasure to Volt to obtain the last part of Blanca's memory. Happy now?" Jay asked, a cold stare on his face.

"Oh, mkay! I just needed to know. Thanks, JJ!" At that, Moses decided to comment on the situation.

"Bubbles, if you keep that up, yer gonna be treated the same way as Jay 'ere treats me."

"Nah, no one can go as stupid as that except for you, Red." Norma mocked. Moses was then furious and ran up to Norma.

"What did you just say?" Moses yelled, his face red with anger. Walking through the party, Will came between both Norma and Moses and whacked them both upside the head yet again. After their yelps of pain, Chloe rose from her place on the couch and noticed that Blanca was absent from the group that had gathered around the front of the house. She then asked the party of her whereabouts.

"Blanca said that she'd meet us there when we arrived." Shirley explained.

"Alright, we should get going, then." Senel added. Everyone nodded, and the party was off to Werites Beacon's lighthouse.

As the group made their entrance to the lighthouse, Blanca greeted them and beckoned them all to the elevator to the Quiet Lands. While it moved down, Blanca was awed by the surroundings that slowly added to one another later and later in the descent, even though she had seen it before. Although, she thought that everything was different each time you came, and this surely did not break the rule. While the elevator made its descent to the ground of the Quiet Lands, the small, spectral door of the elevators disappeared, and everyone was able to get off. As Chloe observed her surroundings, she saw a small, purple, thorned rose with electricity leaking out.

Pointing to the rose, Chloe asked, "Is that Volt's flower over there?" Following the direction of where Chloe had pointed, everyone turned their heads to see the rose.

"Most likely," Will began, "It looks like something of Volt's." Everyone began to walk up to the flower and watched as Blanca knelt down and prayed, perhaps for the last time. Focusing her thoughts on her memories, the young girl prayed until the electricity that flowed out of the flower began to burst into large amounts. When the flower bloomed of the electricity, the summon spirit of electricity, Volt, shot out of the flower, and soon floating several feet above the party.

"Who goes there...?" The Great Spirit asked. For the party, the way that Volt had spoken did not go through the air, but through their minds.

"M-My name is Blanca, and we know that your treasure is missing. If it's alright, we'll find it for you. In exchange, could you tell me where my last memories are?" The young girl inquired, hoping that Volt would not respond coldly.

"I accept your offer," The summon spirit replied, the voice echoing in the party's minds, "From my knowledge, I have a good feeling that my treasure will be in the Thunder Monument. Its appearance is that of a thunderbolt frozen in time. I leave this task to you." After Volt had explained the location of the treasure, he dove back into his flower, and like a flash of lightning, he was gone.

"Well, our destination is set, then," Jay said, turning toward the party.

"Okay, then," Blanca said as she stood up and brushed herself off, "So, I guess we're off?" At Blanca's words, everyone nodded, and the party ran to the darkened western skies toward the Thunder Monument. During their walk towards the monument, Blanca asked Norma what the Thunder Monument was like, as she had never been there.

"Well...It's really humid, and sometimes there's the occasional lighting strike. You can make a good plan, though, if you've got a girl scared of thunder and her boyfriend, I'll tell you." Norma explained, remembering a certain event that had happened on one of their visits to the monument.

"I see..." Blanca started, "It sounds interesting, I guess." The two then continued to walk on.

Upon entering the rocky border of the Thunder Monument, the party had noticed that the lightning was not just 'occasional' as Norma said, but was frequently shooting out of the sky. To the party's luck, though, hardly any had hit the ground.

Through the crashes of frequent thunder, Will managed to yell, "Be careful! Quickly head in there before we're stricken by lighting!" The party had done just what Will said and quickly rushed into the monument before they were hit by lightning. As everyone made it inside the first room of the Thunder Monument, the floors were paved with the same pattern as before, resembling a large bolt of lightning hitting in the air.

"Where do you think Volt's treasure would be?" Shirley asked.

"Most likely in the deepest part of the Monument. If we're lucky, we'll be able to quickly get in and get out," Jay told the Ferines girl.

"Yes, we should probably stick together so we're not a target to the lightning," Will began, checking his surroundings, "And stay low. The lightning'll hit you if you're not keeping your guard up." Everyone nodded as if to say that they understood, and at the same time, moved to the second room, where lightning flashed almost as frequently as it did outside. The floor's lightning bolt-like pattern now lit up as the party slowly walked through the room, trying to take every step cautiously. Moments later, a black hole-like object came into view a few yards away from the party.

"What is that thing?" Blanca asked.

"It's a teleportation wormhole. It can take us anywhere in this room where another one of its kind is, all we have to do is think about which one we want to go to, and it should take us to that certain one." Jay explained somewhat enthusiastically.

"Should we be going in it?" Chloe asked the ninja. He turned to Chloe and nodded.

"Yes. Everyone, when you enter, keep your thoughts on the wormhole closest to the exit. That way, we'll have to worry less about covering more ground by ourselves." Jay pointed to their hopeful destination of the wormhole closest to the exit of the room. Everyone understood their goal for the moment, and one-by-one, they jumped into the wormholes.

"Cannonball!" Norma and Moses both shouted as they backed up. Holding hands, the two dove into the wormhole together, their spirits high. As they did, Jay shrugged and sighed at the foolishness of the two.

"Those two just have to be like this whenever they go somewhere..." He mumbled to himself. Backing himself up, he, too, dove into the wormhole, although much quieter than Norma or Moses had. Everyone else did the same and followed Jay. Soon, only Blanca remained.

"Here I go...!" She muttered under her breath while she backed herself up. Running as fast as her legs could take her, she dove into the wormhole, thinking of absolutely nothing but her destination. When she was fully in, she had felt like she was in the middle of a hurricane. Dark gales of wind blew quickly across the young girl's face, making it feel like she was being ripped apart piece-by-piece by only the wind. Soon, small static shocks began to shock the girl, but she tried as hard as she could not to scream in pain while they shocked her along with the gales, still thinking only of her final destination. Soon, everything blew at its strongest, and Blanca closed her eyes in pain, but in that one moment, she landed face first on the ground right outside of her desired destination. Taking a look at herself, she saw no damage done to her whatsoever.

"Did you feel the shocks too, Blanca?" Shirley asked, a worried look on her face.

"Y-yeah..." Blanca replied shakily as she nodded.

"Don't worry about a thing, Whitey! According to Teach, they were just illusions. Now c'mon! We gotta find that treasure!" Norma added while Blanca brushed herself off from the ground as she got up.

"Oh...Okay," the young girl replied as she followed Norma to the next room, where everybody met. To her surprise, it looked completely identical to the first room, with the same thunderstorm pattern on the floor. Changing her attention from the floor to the party was Will's voice.

"There's only one room left, everyone. Be careful." Everyone nodded at this comment and began to walk into the last room of the monument. Large, tube like apparatuses lined up on the each edge of the room, making quiet sounds as the liquid in the tubes flowed from bottom to top. Slowly but surely, the party made their way up the three staircases that led to the top, but something blocked their way.

"It looks like someone turned one of the machines off while we weren't here," Chloe said as she noticed the barricade.

"Perhaps Volt's treasure consists of so much power that it deactivated one of the switches in this room," Will replied, scratching his chin as he did so.

"So all we have to do is turn it back on, then?" Blanca asked. Will then turned his head to her and nodded. The swordsgirl began to walk back to the deactivated switch that she eyed, but before she could go anywhere past the party, Jay's arm blocked her from going anywhere else.

"It's not going to be that easy," Jay turned his head and explained to Blanca, "Lightning could strike us at any moment if we separate, so we'll need someone quick to do this job."

"How 'bout Senel? He's pretty fast." Moses suggested.

"Yeah! Pick Senny, pick Senny!" Norma agreed.

"Alright then. Senel, are you ready?" Jay asked, a bit surprised that he himself was not picked. Senel turned his head toward Jay and nodded to him, ready to run. Before he began to run, though, Chloe tapped Senel on the shoulder, a bit of a worried look on her face. Senel turned around to see the worried look on Chloe's face and asked what was wrong.

"Coolidge," she said, "Be careful." At this, the marine smiled at the knight and nodded, easing Chloe's worries. She then backed up into the crowd of the party again, hoping that Senel wouldn't get hurt. When she stopped, Jay began to count down.

"Three...Two...One...GO!" The ninja yelled. As soon as Jay said 'Go', Senel ran as fast as he could to get to the apparatus without getting damaged. Quickly, the marine ran down the third flight of stairs and made a left, turning on the left switch as he ran back from the left wall. Keeping his speed, Senel then headed straight toward the next switch, but he wasn't as lucky as he was with the first. A large lightning bolt flew from the ceiling of the monument, headed on a collision course with the marine.

"Senel!"

"Coolidge!"

Hearing the calls of his comrades, he dove down from where the lightning was headed and landed right in front of the machine. As he turned it on, the lightning bolt crashed into one of the tubes, cracking its smooth surface. Hoping that the tube would keep together for a little while longer, Senel pulled the last switch to the machine, lighting it up. When Senel saw all of the liquid apparatuses' bubbles flowing as they should, he ran back to the party, whom had broken the barricade the second he activated the last switch. From what the marine saw, the party was quickly searching through the deepest room, hoping to find a treasure.

"Is that the treasure up there?" Shirley asked, pointing to a small, frozen lightning bolt stuck between two small pillars.

"Looks like something of his," Norma added, agreeing with Shirley. Once everyone looked up, they, too, saw the small bolt of lightning.

"How're we gonna get that thing from all the way up there?" Moses asked, his head tilted. At the bandit's words, Norma ran up as close as she could to where she could see Volt's treasure and turned her head toward Moses. She saluted to him, and the party, rather enthusiastically.

"Easy! Just leave it to me!" Norma cheered. Calming herself from her cheer, she slowly got into her spell casting position and began to chant, focusing on one spot to hit directly. When she felt enough power in her body, her closed eyes opened quickly as she unleashed the spell.

"GRAVE!" Norma yelled. Not even seconds after she let the spell go, a chunk of earth jumped out of the spot under the treasure's position. The tip of the stalagmite-like chunk of earth collided with the bolt of lightning, slowly forcing the bolt to roll down from its original place. Norma cheered at the sight of her plan working out and ran as close as she could to the falling bolt to catch it. As it fell, the treasure hunter's eyes widened. She stretched her arms and hands as far as they could go to secure the falling treasure in place, and...

"I got it! I got it!" Norma cried, her grasp tightening on the treasure as she ran towards the party. They couldn't help but clap, even if some of it was sarcasm. They continued to clap for the next few seconds, until Blanca thought she had heard something from the lower level of the room...

"W-wait...Do you all hear that noise?" Blanca asked the party. As it was said, the party quieted down and tried to listen to the noise, hearing exactly what Blanca was hearing.

"Yeah, it sounds like...Water," Chloe added. When Senel heard that, his puzzled face became a serious one. He remembered the lightning hitting one of the water tubes and cracking its delicate glass.

"No!" He yelled, "When the bolt of lightning almost hit me, I ducked down and it hit one of those machines!"

"So, then, that means..." Norma began, "That this place is going to be an aquarium!" At Norma's words, everyone headed toward the path that led back to the third room. Senel was right. The crack that had once been on the machine now opened up into a large hole, spewing the liquid it transported on the ground.

"What'll we do?" Shirley asked, her voice quivering.

"Just what we did getting in!" Jay exclaimed, "We're going to run out as fast as we possibly can! Now go!" The party nodded in unison, and they did as they were told. Running as fast as they could, everyone made haste to get to the door to the next room. Once there, though, they found it locked tightly.

"It's not opening!" Blanca cried as she tried destroying the door with her sword.

"Blanca, back up!" Senel told her. The young girl walked as far away from the door as she could, close to the party, and watched as Senel ran head-on towards the door in an attempt to break it. Senel punched the door as hard as he could repeatedly, making large dents in it until finally it created an opening. By this time, the liquid had already reached the party's knees, but they were able to manage crawling through the open space that Senel was able to make. Slowly but surely, the party made it safely out of the room soon to be completely filled with water. Upon entering the third room, Will explained that the fastest way to get out was not by the teleportation wormhole, but by jumping from platform to platform. As he ran through the door to the second room (which was, luckily, open.), he took a look at the large room and noticed something different about it.

"Everything looks normal again in here. We should be able to get out of here without any worries of the thunder crashing so frequently anymore." As soon as that was said, Will turned back around in the direction of the door and jumped from the higher platform to the lower one, repeating the same thing, until he eventually made it towards the door. The group followed in his footsteps and succeeded to make it toward the entrance. Running through the last room and the rocky border of the Thunder Monument, the party had finally made it out of the monument, with the treasure in Norma's hand. As they stopped, the party began to pant, worm out from all of the running.

"D-Did we make it...?" Blanca asked, gasping for breath.

"Yeah, somehow...We made it." Norma answered.

"What about the Monument? Isn't it going to flood?" Chloe asked.

"No, actually," Jay began, "There are automata that live in the Thunder Monument. When they see that the tube's broken, they'll begin fixing it immediately."

"That's good to hear. Hopefully, Volt'll be glad to see his treasure." Senel commented. Everyone agreed with him.

"Shouldn't we be gettin' back to 'im?" Moses questioned.

"Yeah," Shirley began as she brushed herself off, "We should be giving him his treasure back." The rest of the party agreed, and they began to walk back towards the rose where Volt slept. Once there, Norma handed the miniature lightning bolt to Blanca. When she secured it in her hands, she knelt down in front of Volt's flower and began to pray for his awakening. As she prayed, the purple flower began to shine once again, and when it fully bloomed, Volt rose out, noticing the return of the party.

"I take it that you have found my treasure?" Volt asked rather calmly through the minds of the party.

"Yes," Blanca replied, holding up the lightning bolt towards the summon spirit with both hands. As he saw it in the young girl's hands, he slowly took it from her and examined it, seeing that no harm was done to it at all. Letting go of the treasure, Volt let his lightning bolt float in the air for a few seconds until he clapped, catching it in both of his hands, absorbing its power. From afar, a rumble of thunder was heard upon Volt's power returning. Blanca flinched a small amount, but regained her senses after the noise of the thunder faded away.

"I thank you for completing this task for me, children of man. Your efforts have returned my power," Volt whispered, echoing in everyone's minds. He then turned his head toward Blanca and remembered her reason for returning the treasure.

"Child of the Future, I commend your efforts. The final piece of your memory lies where you spent many mornings as a small child. After you regain that memory, the memories that you have been searching for will return to your mind during this passing night."

"Thank you, Volt!" Blanca said, smiling. Her spirits soared as she heard Volt's words echoing in her mind. As soon as she thanked him, the summon spirit bowed in respect and dove back down into his flower.

"Does that mean we're calling it a day?" whined Norma.

"Yep, looks like it," Moses answered, he, too, somewhat tired as well. When everyone heard that, they all headed towards the elevator to the lighthouse and were safely brought back to town. As they exited, the party saw the sun make its decent into the ocean once again, ending the day. When the sunset was seen, that meant that the day was over. (At least in Norma's case.)

"Well," the treasure hunter began, "I guess we're done today--" Before she could say anything else, an idea popped into her head that she should have thought of before. "WAIT! Ugh, why didn't I think of this before? Whitey, when you gain all of your memory back, we can have a big party! Yeah!"

"A...Party?" Blanca asked, "Why a party?"

"Because we never got to have that party for G-Girl! We can have it for you! How about it, guys?"

"Well..." Chloe began, "I suppose it isn't such a bad idea."

"I'm with Bubbles on this one," Moses added.

"Why not?" Senel said, shrugging. Everyone else agreed to the idea of a party for Blanca. Norma then planned everything in a record: two seconds, and explained the details.

"Okay, guys! The party's tomorrow night at six o' clock sharp! Be there, or else! Oh, and dress up! I'm gonna get the BBs to be DJs for us, too!" With that being said, Norma rushed off to make preparations for the party, cheering and laughing maniacally as she did so.

"Well," Will coughed, "Let's call it a night. Everyone, get some rest." Everyone nodded, and the party were off to their homes.

As Senel, Chloe, and Blanca made their way towards Senel's house, the sun's light faded even more, making the sky a darker blue. Upon making it to the front yard, both Senel and Chloe went inside, the unnoticed Blanca tiptoeing towards the small bench that sat against the front wall of Senel's house.

_"This is the place that Volt was talking about, alright..."_ Blanca thought. She looked up into the slowly darkening sky, only to see a lone shooting star heading right towards her. Seeing the white light, she knew it was a memory, and she stayed put on the bench until the white light wrapped itself around Blanca, her mind being embraced by a memory of her days as a toddler.

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An infant Blanca, perhaps only a year old, sat on the small, wooden bench, watching her mother swing her sword to train herself. Jumping, kicking, and flipping, Blanca's mother performed almost every kind of eres skill she knew. The real Blanca stood by and watched her mother's face clearer than ever before.

"Demon Fang!" Blanca's mother yelled, throwing a fang-like object at a small, wooden plank. It hit the plank directly, breaking it in half. Blanca's mother smiled, picking up the two broken pieces of wood and sheathing her sword, as well. She turned toward her infant daughter, who was sucking her thumb, but was carefully watching her mother at the same time.

"I guess my iron eres is still working...It's hard to believe after all this time without training." Blanca's mother said to her daughter, smiling. The small child chuckled at her mother's words for some reason. Even though she hadn't said her first words yet, she was still as cheerful as ever.

"Now if only you would just tell me why it's funny..." The infant's mother said, patting her child on the head. Turning her head towards the sunrise, she unsheathed her sword once again and set up another board.

"Demon Fang!" The woman said once again, dragging her sword on the ground to create another fang-like object that broke the board in two. Smiling, the real Blanca sat down next to her infant counterpart and watched her mother train, as well. The infant Blanca, though, took her thumb out of her mouth and began to mumble something.

"De...Dem...Demon...Fa...Fang..." The small child said softly. At the child's words, her mother immediately turned her head towards the girl and walked toward her, kneeling down in front of her daughter.

"Blanca...What did you just say?" Blanca's mother asked, her eyes widened.

"Demon...Fang..." The infant said again, still in a quiet voice. Hearing those words from her daughter, Blanca's mother smiled like the real Blanca had never seen before. It was a smile of amazement, proudness, and perhaps more. Her mother then stood up and gave her daughter a hug, her face still beaming.

"Blanca! You...You said your first words!"

"Demon Fang?" the infant asked as she tilted her head, still in her mother's arms. Her mother let out a chuckle and kissed her daughter on the cheek.

"I knew you would do much better as a swordsgirl than use brute strength like your father. I can't wait to see the look on his face when he hears you..."

"Demon Fang!" The small Blanca cheered a wide smile on her face. The real Blanca began to laugh, but when her eyes opened from her laughter, she remembered the voice of her mother: It was kind and gentle, yet stern, like a parent's voice should be. Although, it sounded so familiar to her...

_"That voice...It's...No, it couldn't be. My Mama isn't--But...Those eyes…I remember looking at those eyes when I was here. Eyes like mine, but gentle when around her family. When she got mad, her eyes were serious, and when she would smile, we would always smile with her, because she hardly ever did."_ Blanca thought, reminiscing on the voice. She took one last look at the shadow of her mother before she entered the house with the infant Blanca. Taking a closer inspection at her mother, she knew that her mother was very close to her. But as of then, her name still remained a mystery to Blanca.

"But, that was then...When I was a baby...She doesn't even care anymore, I bet!" Blanca yelled, stomping her foot. As she stomped her foot, the memory shattered into pieces of broken glass once again, and turned everything to white light as the background broke into light. Seconds later, the light faded, and so did the memory.

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"Aah!" Blanca woke up on the bench, still a bit drowsy. She knew what had just happened; her memory of her first word appeared before her. Shaking her head to gain consciousness, Blanca sat upright on the chair again and looked into the now starry sky of the night.

_"My memories...They'll all come back tonight..."_ Blanca thought to herself, smiling. Knowing that she would gain them as she slept during the passing night, she headed into Senel's house with a bit of nervousness, but a bit of anxiety. Hopefully, her memories would bring back mostly times that were memorable, and not times that she hated like what had happened before she ran away...

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Aaah! The SUSPENSE! –Cough- Yeah, isn't Blanca's first word so awesome? XD Ugh, anyways, be on the look out for the last chapter, entitled End of the Symphony, coming in approximately…Oh, I don't know. Probably a week or two at the least. Please review! I'd love to see how you thought of this chapter. Like I said, I don't think this is the best one, but it's alright, nevertheless. Remember, the end of Blanca's story is only a week or two away!


	9. End of the Symphony

Welcome, welcome, to the very last chapter of SotP, End of the Symphony! Now, just some sage advice before you start reading:

One: Grab a cup of tea or another beverage that you like.

Two: Grab a snack.

Three: Get a comfy chair.

Why I'm telling you this, you ask? Well, because End of the Symphony is pretty long. Liiike…12,600 words long, according to Microsoft Word. And, because it's the last chapter, I'm staring a new tradition of mine where I'm going to respond to the reviewers who were kind enough to review chapter seven!

The Zelda Master: I know, I cracked up thinking of some good first words for Blanca. I've got this whole list, and then I think 'Demon Fang!' I thought it was the coolest thing ever. XP But don't worry, she'll recognize her parents in this chapter!

NaraShikamaru21: I know…I'm sorry it's over! I liked it a whole bunch, too. I think I have a feeling that you'll make a good skit for this chapter, from the strange thoughts I've gotten while writing this one…Oh, and AWESOME plushies! Do you think you can make me a pair of Senel and Chloe plushies? XD

Bishieluver01-Don't you worry, I've got plenty ideas for more stories. The ToL section is going to be filled with my name soon enough. O.o; And don't worry, I put some Blanca/Jay fluff in it, but not so much that it's stupid, hopefully.

DragonQuester-Whoa. That's kind of cool. You think the kid was a member of Cruxis or something? –Cough- J-Just a hunch is all. Oh, and I'm really glad you liked the story! Hopefully, you'll like the ending, too!

And now, ladies and gentlemen, bandits and ninjas, knights and marines, I hope you've got your snacks ready, because I present to you the…

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END OF THE SYMPHONY

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Blanca was in a deep slumber. Having known that her memories would come back during the night, she quickly fell asleep after entering the house, hoping for the identity of her friends and family to return to her. When she thought she was asleep, she could have sworn she heard a voice calling to her. Opening her eyes to find that she wasn't in Senel's house anymore, Blanca gasped, looking around at what had surrounded her: complete darkness.

"H-Hello? Is anyone there?" Blanca asked through the darkness. Seconds later, she heard a reply, but it was the same voice that called to her. It was barely audible, but Blanca ran closer to where she thought she heard the voice coming from. As she ran, a small light came into view. She stopped, knowing that it was the light of a memory. She stopped and waited for the light to hit her, but...The light that she had seen was much brighter then any of her previous memories. Faster and faster the light sped, becoming brighter as it moved closer to Blanca. As it grew even closer, the light began to wash away at the darkness, turning even the darkness to light. Blanca covered her eyes; it was much too bright for her to handle. Suddenly, though, before the light could completely envelop Blanca, it stopped. The light then cut through itself to created a door-like portal.

"Am I supposed to go in it?" Blanca asked, looking around at the dome of light that had surrounded her. Suddenly, she heard a voice answering to her question.

"Yes," the voice began, "Please go in it." Blanca gasped at the responding voice, but did as she was told. She would now see everything: Her past, her present, and perhaps even more. Without regrets, the young girl ran into the portal. As she opened her eyes, she felt as if she were sitting down behind a desk of sorts. She then heard the same voice call out to her, clearer than ever before.

"Blanca?" A scholarly voice called. Who was calling her? The young girl said nothing, but looked around to see a classroom. A few other desks surrounded hers, and in them, sat her friends.

"Blanca, answer me when I'm talking to you." The scholarly voice said again, in a bit more of a strict tone. The young girl looked up to see a large man a few feet from the desks in front of the room. His hair was short and brown, and he wore an orange robe, symbolizing his place as the schoolmaster. Knowing that the appearance was familiar, Blanca answered to the name that she thought this man was.

"Yes, Mr. Raynard?" She responded. Moments after that was said, the scenery broke into pieces again. When the memory shattered, Blanca felt her mind grow heavier, although she noticed that the same dome of light appeared behind the broken scenery. She walked back towards the middle; a lone clapping sound was heard as she walked.

"Very good, I'm glad you remember the name of your teacher," The same voice from before said, her voice echoing through the light.

"Wait...Who are you? Why are you in my memories?" Blanca asked, her voice quivering at the thought of a presence besides hers in her mind.

"It is only my job, young one," the voice explained rather calmly.

"Your...Job?" Blanca repeated.

"It matters not, child. Please, enter the second portal," the echoing presence replied. With that being said, another door-like portal appeared, its borders rippling like a pond of water. Blanca nodded, and slowly walked in. At first, she heard only the gentle sound of the morning waves, but soon, it grew to become a whole beach. As the young girl's eyes shifted, she'd noticed something very large and wooden lay right next to her. Backing up to see what it was, she had noticed that it was a large boat, beached on the coast. Sand covered the bottom of the boat, and some small cracks were scattered on some of the large boards of wood on the bow. As she gazed in awe at the ship, she'd heard people call her name. The voices sounded all too familiar to her.

"'Ey! Blanca! C'mon! Ma, Pa, and Uncle Jay are waiting for you so we can eat!" A young voice called out. More footsteps were heard as a second person ran towards Blanca, but the second presence was not as familiar as the first.

"Y-Yeah, Whitey...W-We should hurry up..." The little girl said, her voice as timid as ever. Turning around, Blanca saw a boy and a girl, both the same height, but completely different personalities at heart. The boy wore a loose, no-sleeved T-shirt to cover himself, and his pants were somewhat like those of what Moses's pants looked like from what Blanca could remember, except the pattern of fur was that of a White Leopard Phynx. The girl, on the other hand, wore a white and bright red school uniform, one of which would belong to a schoolgirl on the mainland. Their looks were so clear, that she was sure that she would get this memory right.

"Alright, then, Hunter, Pandora. I'm coming," Blanca said, smiling. The two children smiled at her in exchange, and all three of them ran towards a picnic blanket, where two men and a woman sat, the woman obviously angry by the looks of her face. The three children watched as the woman dressed in yellow complained to the two men.

"Geez! And you won't even try my cooking, JJ!" The woman asked furiously.

"No. I'll pass, thanks." The man dressed in purple responded quietly. Blanca laughed at this. She knew exactly who the woman and the man were.

_'Hehe...I guess Miss Norma never changed through the years,'_ the young girl thought, smiling. Her thoughts were interrupted by the complaining of the other man.

"Aw, c'mon, Jay! Bubbles's cookin' ain't that bad! I've eaten it for, I dunno...10 years, now?"

The future Jay shrugged and replied, "The only reason I suspect you lived was because she would divorce you if you didn't like it." At those words, Blanca walked toward the three people and tried to settle the fight.

"Ah...Mr. Jay...I think that Mr. Sandor really does like his wife's cooking..." Blanca explained to the ninja.

"Yeah!" Norma added, "You tell him, Whitey!"

_'Wife? Miss Norma is Mr. Moses's wife? And Hunter and Pandora are their children...And my friends, too. And Jay's their uncle, at least, according to Mr. Sandor...Right? I remember!'_ Blanca cheered quietly in her thoughts. At that, the scenery melted away, along with the figures of the people in it besides Blanca. Once again, she found herself in the small dome of light, feeling the presence of the guiding voice in it with her.

"I commend you, child. You've remembered your friends. Although, now comes the challenge of remembering your family. Are you ready?" The guiding voice asked.

"Yeah," Blanca answered, her voice filled with confidence. She took a deep breath and awaited the arrival of the third portal. As it opened, she felt a warm presence from it, and walked in upon the portal's full activation. Instead of seeing the darkness at first when entering, she saw the whole scenery: A large room with two beds, a small table, and a set of silverware on the far wall. Before Blanca had a chance to sit down on the bed and wait for someone, a young lady came through the door and smiled at the sight of Blanca. She had long, blond hair with braids scattered around the front of her head, while her clothes had stayed the same as the last time Blanca had seen her, although the skirt that she wore now covered the front of her instead of the small one.

"IrelQues!" The lady called, "When did you get here?"

"Ah, me?" Blanca asked. The lady nodded. "I just got here, I guess."

"Well then, we can get started with your Relares lesson, then!" The lady said, smiling.

_'Relares...Didn't my aunt teach me that..?'_ Blanca asked herself. The only thing she could do was guess, and guess she did.

"Okay, Aunt Shirley," Blanca replied as she smiled back to who she thought was Shirley. Blanca began to walk to the table for her lesson, but because of it being only a memory, the room, along with Shirley, melted away, bringing back the glow of the dome of light. The hands of the voice that was guiding her clapped once more, and she smiled, although not even Blanca could see it.

"Well done, child. All that is left are the identities of your parents. Are you ready to discover who they really are?" the voice asked.

"Yes...I've been waiting much too long to back away now," Blanca replied, almost emotionlessly.

"Are you sure you want to face it?" Blanca nodded once more, and the final portal opened that would reveal the heart of Blanca's past. As Blanca gulped nervously, the portal began to open, revealing the scene of what looked like Senel's house. Slowly, the young girl walked in, her heart racing.

As she entered, she noticed that this memory was different than the rest. Blanca's parents did not notice her presence, because her illusionary self was already sitting on the couch, next to her mother. The mother and daughter both looked at the door nervously, as if they were waiting for someone. The illusion Blanca turned her head toward her mother, while the real Blanca sat down on the floor, a few feet away from the two.

"Papa said he was coming home today, right?" the illusion Blanca asked, tilting her head.

"Yes," Blanca's mother began, "He said he'd be back from the mainland today, but there's been no sign of him at all..."

"Do you think something happened to him...?" There was no answer from the young girl's mother. The only thing she could do was keep her chin up. As she looked out the window, she noticed that the sky was pitch black, and it was very late.

"Blanca...I think you should go to bed. It's late, and I'm sure your father will be home by morning." Blanca's mother muttered, hoping that what she said was only true. At her words, Blanca yawned and nodded, agreeing with her mother.

"I guess you're right, Mama. Good night. Tell Papa I said 'Welcome Back', okay?"

"Alright then. Good night, Blanca." As her mother wished Blanca a good night, she ran upstairs and headed for her room, the door that led to it next to her mother and father's room.

Soon, hours passed, and the swordswoman fell asleep on the couch, hoping and dreaming that her husband would return. Rain pounded against the windows, and thunder crashed, faster and faster as time went by. The real Blanca was getting a bit tired of waiting, so she rushed toward the window, only to see a man with white hair and crystal blue eyes walk towards the house. At the sight of the man, Blanca tried to identify exactly whom was opening the door. On closer inspection, she saw her father opening the door to the house. As he did, Blanca backed up to the place where she sat, and sat back there again.

While the man opened the door, a small amount of rain poured in while it could when the door was fully open. As he closed it, the rain stopped pouring into the house. Blanca's father looked around, only to see his wife sleeping on the couch, waiting for him. Slowly, the man took of his shoes and tiptoed toward where his wife was sleeping. When he was close enough, he softly kissed his wife on the cheek, checking to see if she was awake. Blanca quickly got up and ran towards the young couple. She knew that she'd seen both of their faces somewhere besides her past.

"I'm home..." The man whispered to himself. To his surprise, his wife had opened her brown eyes to see her husband. At the sight of him, her eyes widened and she smiled, slowly getting up to see him. When she was up, she embraced him in a hug and smiled.

"Sorry I'm late, Chloe..." the man whispered. Upon hearing that, Blanca backed up, her eyes widened. The young girl remembered now: those kind eyes from her other memory...They had belonged to none other than _Chloe_! Before Blanca could even think about anything else, Chloe spoke up to the man.

"It's alright, Senel...I was just worried about you, that's all." Chloe replied, her eyes filled with happiness. Knowing who they were now, Blanca noticed that the two really had changed from the people that she stayed with. Senel's hair was a bit longer, and the collar of his Alliance Marine uniform was undone. The white, symmetrical pattern on his kilt had faded, as well. Chloe's short, brown hair had also grown down to her back; the coat that she wore was now buttoned up. She also wore a long, blue skirt now, similar to the pattern of her coat.

_'N...No...Senel and Chloe can't be my Mama and Papa. W-Why didn't they notice me?'_ Blanca began, tears freely flowing down her face, _'I was so close to them all along, and I didn't even recognize that they were right next to me the whole time! And...And they treated me so well here! Why are they so horrible now? Why didn't I know?'_ Tears still flowed down Blanca's face, and anger welled up inside her. Before she was about to scream, the calming voice of the guiding presence calmed Blanca down.

'It is not your fault that you did not know, child. Now, calm down,' the voice said as the scenery was melted away, revealing the return of the darkness, for the dome of light had faded away.

"Now, child...Do you remember your whole name?" the voice asked, trying to calm the little girl down.

"Y-yes, ma'am..."

"May I ask what it is?"

"My name is...Blanca IrelQues Coolidge..." With that, the light was reborn, and it wrapped itself up around Blanca, but instead of taking her to her memory, it took her back to reality.

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"Aaah!" Blanca screamed, rising from the couch as she did so. When she came to, she noticed everyone already in Senel's house.

"What's wrong with you, Whitey?" Norma asked. Blanca turned her head to the treasure hunter and got off of the couch.

"S-Sorry. I was just a bit shocked from a nightmare, that's all," the young girl responded, trying to fight back tears. A few moments later, she looked around at the party, noticing that her 'parents' were absent. She'd guessed it was a good thing. Right now, she didn't want to see either of their faces. Shifting her gaze out the window, she'd noticed that the sun had reached its peak in the middle of the sky.

"What time is it?" Blanca asked, still somewhat drowsy.

"You slept rather late," Jay began, "It's already 3 hours past noon. Senel and Chloe said they'd tried waking you up, but no matter what they did, they couldn't get you up."

"Oh...Maybe it was because I was regaining my memories?" Blanca questioned. At her words, Norma's ears perked up as she ran toward the young girl, grabbing onto her shoulders.

"Wait...You got your memories back, Whitey?" Norma asked while a villan-like grin spread on her face.

"Uhm, yeah." When the treasure hunter heard this, she began to shake Blanca while she cheered, 'She got it, she got it!' Knowing that Norma would keep going until she passed out, Will whacked her upside the head once more.

"Ow! What was that for, Teach?" Norma whined.

"Your own good," the scholar simply replied. The two would've begun to fight if it wasn't for Blanca asking a question.

"Where did Senel and Chloe go, by the way?" Blanca asked, not even bothering to call them 'Mr.' or 'Miss' anymore. Shirley spoke up to explain.

"Well, Norma made Moses the party planner, so Jay told Senel and C to watch over him so he doesn't..."

"So he doesn't do anything stupid, of course," Jay added, finishing what Shirley had started. Blanca laughed at this, but whispered something to herself along the lines of _'Good.'_ Although no one heard it, a frustrated look crossed Blanca's face, and that itself was an obvious sign of distress to the party.

"Blanca? Are you okay?" Shirley's asked, her voice as innocent as ever. Answering her question, Blanca nodded and smiled from the outside. Although, on the inside, she felt like her head was about to explode from the memories recently gained. Not knowing how Blanca really had felt, the Ferines girl returned the smile, her hand reaching out to Blanca.

"We're going to go to the Fountain Plaza to check on how Senel, Chloe and Moses are doing with the party. Would you like to come with us, Blanca?" Blanca nodded and took Shirley's hand. She'd known that both Senel and Chloe were at the Fountain Plaza, but she figured that she had to say at least something to them. Since no one was looking, Norma climbed up on the table and jumped up and down like a maniac, beginning her pep-rally.

"Whooo! C'mon, everyone! Let's go to the plaza!" Norma cheered, her fist flying up in the air. Everyone responded with their yells of 'Charge!', and the party was off to the plaza, their faces beaming. As they walked through town, the sky was a crisp, cool blue along with the water of the surrounding rivers.

"This is gonna be the best party EVER!" Norma commented, marching and looking up at the sky. Of course, it wasn't the best thing to do, for she bumped into Moses while keeping her eyes on the sky. Their heads collided, forming a huge bump on the top of each head.

"Augh...Bubbles, what in the hell was that fer?" Moses yelled, rubbing his head.

"_ME_? _You_ were the one who bumped into _me_! And aren't you supposed to be helping Senny n' C?" The treasure hunter argued.

"Well, uhm...I was, but then they told me to 'go somewhere else...'" Jay snickered at Moses's words. The ninja thought that Senel and Chloe would be able to handle the annoyance that was Moses, but it seemed that he stood corrected.

"Well, Red, you can come with us. At least then we'll have JJ to shut you up," Norma sneered.

"Ha! That wimp ain't scarin' me even if he tries!" Jay was about to make yet another rude remark about Moses that would rest his own case, but Shirley pointed to the Fountain Plaza, signaling that the party was there.

"Come on; let's go to Senel and C!" Shirley chirped. Everyone nodded, and the party ran towards where Senel and Chloe were working, both of them putting streamers and those paper chains around the streetlamps.

"Hey, lovebirds! Need any help?" Norma mocked. The two turned to her, both pairs of eyes glaring at the treasure hunter. Upon seeing the two, Blanca backed up, hoping that she wouldn't be noticed.

"Norma, would you stop calling us that?" Senel asked, trying to be as polite as he could to shut her up.

"Why wouldn't I? You two are practically married." The treasure hunter responded, shrugging.

"M-married...?" Chloe muttered under her breath. Knowing that Senel probably wouldn't take much more of Norma's mocking, Chloe tried changing the subject.

"Norma, did you bring everyone here?" Chloe asked nervously.

"Sure did," Norma began, "We had a bit of trouble getting Whitey up here, but she's A-OK now! Right, Whitey?" The treasure hunter turned to the swordsgirl and pointed, but Blanca said nothing.

"Ummm...Whitey! Say something to C!" Norma whispered. Blanca turned her head to the knight and tried saying something that wouldn't worry the knight, but all she could say was the complete opposite to them. She'd thought it was only natural to be mad.

"...Go away," Blanca murmured coldly, although it was loud enough for both Senel and Chloe to hear. The two both looked at each other with confused looks, as did everyone else, but Shirley turned to the young girl first.

"Blanca, how could you say that? Senel and C have been taking care of you all this time!" Blanca wanted to say something nice, she TRIED to open her mouth and say something, but it was almost as if a curse had prevented her from saying anything else to her so-called 'parents'. Turning her head to Shirley, it felt like the curse was broken, so she decided to at least say something to the Ferines girl.

"I can't...Say anything to them anymore. It's strange." After hearing her words, Senel jumped down from the ladder that he was on and walked toward the young girl. As he did, though, something made Blanca back up when he came close.

"Blanca, we're just trying to talk to you. I won't come any closer, okay?" Senel said, trying to console the girl. Trying to hold back tears, she continued to back up, blocking his sight with her hands.

"No! St-Stay back!" Blanca yelled. She couldn't take it anymore. Quickly, she ran towards Fallingwater, the tears that she held back now freely flowing down her cheeks.

Everyone stared as she ran down the road, their expressions all the same: shocked. They were having a party for her, but this is how she reacted?

"What's buggin' her?" Moses asked.

"Did something happen to her?" Chloe questioned.

"Well, she DID get all of her memories back, y'know," Norma added. When hearing those words, Senel began to think about the morning that had just passed; he remembered Blanca saying some odd things. The marine then turned his head to Chloe.

"Do you think that's why she..." Senel began. He didn't even have to finish what he was about to say for Chloe to understand.

"There's no doubt about it."

"There's no doubt about what, exactly?" Shirley asked, tilting her head.

"When Coolidge and I noticed that Blanca wasn't up late in the morning, we tried waking her up, but all she did was scream and say 'It's not true'..." At those words, everyone's faces turned into a puzzled expression. Will had reminded Senel and Chloe that they said nothing of it when they were explaining the situation to the remaining party as they prepared for the coming celebration.

"We really thought that there was no need for it," Chloe explained, her expression a bit concerned. While the party listened to the words of the knight, Jay tried to replay in his mind what Chloe and Senel had just explained.

"What you're saying could actually prove to be vital information," the ninja began, "If Blanca was saying something like that, it could mean that her memories may have taken a turn for the worse while she regained them."

"Maybe she just needs someone to talk to," Shirley suggested, "I can go talk to her to see what happened." At this, Jay nodded at the idea. It was probably the best thing that they'd be able to do for Blanca...At least, for now, anyway.

"That would be a big help. Thanks, Shirley." Senel said, giving a quick smile at her. She returned the smile, but her face turned back to serious as she ran up in the northwestern direction, following the trails of where Blanca had gone. While she ran up the western roads of Werites Beacon, she'd noticed that the sun was already beginning to set in the western skies. Shirley knew that she didn't have much time left before the celebration began.

Upon making her way to Lumen Spring, the Ferines girl noticed Blanca curled up into a ball near where the water met the land. The young girl was staring blankly at the old ruins in the middle of the spring until she saw the figure of Shirley in the corner of her eye. When she did, the swordsgirl turned her head quickly in Shirley's direction, rubbing her eyes from her crying.

"Oh...Hello, Miss Shirley," Blanca murmured, still rubbing her eyes.

"Hello, Blanca," Shirley began, "Would it be alright if I talked to you for a bit?"

The young girl nodded at the Merines, and she sat down right next to Blanca. Silence ensued for a few moments while a cool, evening breeze flew by, chilling Blanca's tear-stained face. When the wind died down, Shirley broke the silence.

"So...Why are you being like this to Senel and Chloe? Why aren't you talking to them at all?" Shirley asked. Blanca kept her gaze on the ruins, but began to explain to her friend.

"Well...All I can say is this, Miss Shirley. Senel and Chloe aren't exactly the best people to be around in the future. They...They fought a lot, despite the fact that they wanted to be around one another. I couldn't do anything about it, I remember..." Blanca explained, her voice shaking as she held back tears.

"You know them in the future?" Shirley asked, almost afraid of knowing the answer.

"Uhm...Before I go on, promise you won't tell anyone unless I say so...Please?" The young girl then turned her gaze to Shirley and put her hand out to her, a pinky standing out from the other four. Shirley nodded and put her pinky around Blanca's, smiling faintly as if to say, _'I promise_. Blanca then smiled back at her and stared back into the spring.

"Senel and Chloe are my parents. I see them almost every day in my time," Blanca said blankly. Despite the blankness of what Blanca had just said, Shirley was in a bit of shock. It was hard for her to actually realize that the young girl standing next to her was actually...

"I...I see..." Shirley tried to say, as it was the only thing that would come out of her mouth.

"I'll tell you the whole story, if you'd like." Blanca told the Ferines girl.

"Yes, I'd like to hear it."

"O-Okay. It all started a few weeks ago, after my papa returned from the mainland. I don't know what came over him when he was gone, but whatever it was, it wasn't leaving his mind. He started to fight with my mama, and...And I just couldn't take it anymore. My friends and I wanted to stop the fighting somehow, and we were able to find one way. You see, my mama and papa's anniversary was coming up in about a week, so we looked through my friends' mother's Collector's Book. We found something to our interest: the Silver Rose, found only in the Earth Monument. Stories have been told about it that if this rose is brought to two people in love, then their bond will be eternal," Blanca explained.

"What did you do?" Shirley asked, interested by the story.

"Well, I did what I thought was right. I went to the Earth Monument alone and retrieved the rose, but there were so many monsters...I was able to kill most of them, but when I came out of the monument, I was pretty hurt. After I'd gotten out of the Quiet Lands, I'd noticed it was nightfall, and I tried sneaking back into the house. But...Mama and Papa thought I was only out there to train. I...I tried to explain to them what I was doing, but they...They just didn't pay any attention at all! So...I threw the rose down on the ground to show them what I was really at the monument for."

"What was their reaction?"

"I never got to see. Before I saw the looks on their faces, I wrote a note saying that I was running away. I left for the Altar of the Sea and got there the following morning with my friend Hunter. He told me I didn't have to go. He said that it was a bad idea. But I went. I'd thought,_ 'if they think they can search everywhere, I know they can't search the past.'_ I asked Rem to lend me her power, and then...I met all of you," The swordsgirl replied, finishing her story. Shirley knew what had happened from there.

"And that's why you came to the past? So Senel and C couldn't find you?" Shirley questioned.

"Yeah, but...They were there, right in front of me, even when I wanted to be so far away!" Blanca replied, her eyes beginning to water, "I...I don't even know what to say to them now! I hate them both!"

"Blanca...You shouldn't hate them...I'm sure they care about what you were trying to do for them. They may be worried sick in the future. They may be looking for you this very second!"

"They are...?" Blanca asked, a bit shaken from Shirley's words.

"There's no doubt about it. Blanca, they're your parents. Those two would do anything to keep their child safe, I'm sure of that..." The Merines responded.

"Then...What should I do, Miss Shirley? Should I tell them who I am now...?"

"I'm going to tell you what you should do. When you feel comfortable around those two again, tell them who you are. Explain to them what happened. You can't just leave with Senel and C and everyone still being confused about your identity, and I can't tell them all myself...Okay?"

Blanca sighed, but took in and memorized the advice that was given to her as she nodded. "Okay...But...What if I just can't talk to them? What if something goes wrong, Miss Shirley?" Shirley was surprised at Blanca's sudden outburst, but tried to understand the situation as if it were her own. She then put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"If something like that happens, then we'll face it when we get to it. But for now, we'll be a team, okay?" After saying this, a smile crossed Shirley's face. Blanca switched her gaze from the ruins to the girl and smiled weakly in exchange.

"Alright...I guess I can try," Blanca began, sighing in between, "Thank you for your help, Miss Shirley."

"It's no trouble at all," The Ferines girl began. She was about to leave by herself when she noticed that it was already getting dark. She then stood up and held her arm out towards Blanca, saying, "Don't worry. Everything'll be okay. Now, don't you want to go to the party? It's all for you, you know."

Blanca kindly took Shirley's hand, stood up, and nodded. "Yeah...Let's go!" The swordsgirl cheered happily, trying to cheer herself and Shirley up a bit. Shirley was glad to see Blanca feeling a bit better, and began to run back on the path to Werites Beacon, the two of them both excited for the coming festivities.

As the two girls made it out of Fallingwater, the moon had already risen, and the sun was now asleep. Night was only beginning, and the candlelit streetlamps of Werites Beacon were beginning to light one by one, brightening the darkening night.

"C'mon! Let's go to the Fountain Plaza! Everyone should already be there by now," Shirley explained to the young girl. She nodded and gave a slight smile in agreement, as she was already hearing the noise from the celebration at the square. Both Blanca and Shirley then ran as fast as they could to the middle of town, but while Blanca ran, she thought she heard the voice who was aiding her through her memories return to her...

"Blanca IrelQues Coolidge..." The guiding voice began, "I can feel that your trust is still not at its brightest for your family. Tonight...That will change, I promise you."

_"You again! Just who are you?"_ Blanca thought while she ran. There was no answer. Hopefully, she'd be able to figure it out when the voice would give her perhaps the missing piece to the puzzle of her memories back. Before she was about to tell Shirley about the voice, they had already made it to the Fountain Plaza, which had drastically changed from the last time she saw it earlier in the day. There was now a small bandstand-like stage in front of the fountain. The streetlamps were now decorated with streamers going from one streetlamp to another. The 'Fun Bunch' was already partying themselves as they danced to the music by (surprisingly...) The Bantam Bouncers accompanied by Shiina as they sang 'Sunday Morning' on the stage in front of the fountain. While they were dancing, a certain treasure hunter in formals noticed Blanca and Shirley enter the party.

"Hey!" Norma began, "It's Shirl with the guest of honor! Shirl...Do you think you could go back to Musette's? We had a formal dress delivered for you there for the party. You think you'd wanna put it on?"

"Oh, sure!" Shirley squealed in excitement, running as fast as she could to Musette's, leaving Blanca at the Plaza entrance.

"Sorry, Whitey. They didn't have any your size," Norma told the young girl, who wasn't at all disappointed. Chloe, who was also in her formal costume, then noticed the conversation between the two and gave Blanca the truth about what had happened.

"Norma...Weren't you the one who said that we didn't even know her dress size?" The knight asked.

"Uhhh...C! Mind your own business! Go dance with Senny or something!" Norma whined. While she whined, Blanca eyed Chloe for a moment, remembering Shirley's advice.

"Well, at least I know the truth about it," Blanca began, giving a bit of a forced smile to Chloe, "Th-Thanks, Chloe." Chloe returned the smile, but walked back to one of the southern benches and sat down on it. Norma then noticed Blanca actually talking to Chloe today, and decided to make a comment.

"Aw, so you two are warming up again?"

"Norma, uhm...Could you please...Be quiet?"

"Geez! Ed-_gy_! Fine, I'm gonna go dance. Food's over there, just to let you know," Norma explained, pointing to the right side of the plaza, its floor now covered by a giant banquet of food. The treasure hunter left after her explanation, which left Blanca by herself. She decided since she didn't really know much about dancing, she'd steer clear of the dance floor unless someone asked her to dance. Until then, it was the banquet for her.

When she walked over, she noticed Jay grabbing a ladleful of punch and putting it into a small cup.

"Hello, Jay," Blanca said, greeting the ninja.

"Hello there, Blanca. Need any punch?" Jay asked, almost embarrassed.

"Hmm...I guess so. Thanks," the young girl responded as she watched Jay take another ladle full of punch and poured it into another glass, handing it to Blanca. When she received it, she nodded to him as if to thank him and began sipping on it, wondering what she was going to eat. Everything on the table looked pretty good, and the smells were tempting her to try almost one portion of everything there. On one side lay a tray of small triangle-shaped sandwiches, and next to it being a small pyramid of Cream Doughnuts...Or, at least, it was a whole pyramid until Moses's hand grabbed the one on the top, making the pyramid look...Not pyramid like. On the other side of the table divided by the punch bowl lay a large pizza with ten slices, most likely one slice for everyone in the party...Wait a minute...

"Jay? Is this pizza supposed to be one slice per person?"

"Well, it was, but I suggested we added two more slices for Moses considering the animal he already is."

"O-Oh...Okay," the young girl murmured to herself, taking the last sip of her punch. As she did, the music stopped, and Curtis began to talk on the microphone at the front of the stage.

"Hello there, brothers and sisters! How are we all doing tonight?" Curtis asked, the microphone doing absolutely nothing to his voice's volume except making it a bit more obnoxious.

"We're AWESOME!" Norma chimed in, speaking for the whole party.

"Good! Now, before I start this next song, let's give a round of applause to Miss Blanca over there at the banquet for getting her memories back! C'mon, everyone!" As Curtis began to clap, everyone else did, as well, for Blanca's returned memories. The applause lasted for a few seconds, but when it died down, Isabella jumped onto the stage and explained the next dance.

"Hello, everyone! I'd like to announce that this next dance is a Sadie Hawkins dance, so girls, choose your dancing partners before we begin the song! You have five minutes!" Isabella explained rather enthusiastically.

"What? Who the_ heck_ is Sadie Hawkins? I ain't seein' her at this dance!" Moses complained.

"No," Will began, "A Sadie Hawkins dance is a special kind of dance where the women choose their partners instead of us men." As soon as he heard that, Moses's face turned red with a bit of anger, but he left for the men's bench where Senel sat at the bottom right corner of the plaza. Before he was able to sit down, though, Norma grabbed Moses's arm.

"Oh, no you don't, Red. You're dancing with me whether you like it or not, got it?"

"Aw, hell..." The bandit responded, although not showing any protest to the offer. He and Norma stood on the dance floor, waiting for the song to begin. Blanca, on the other hand, walked up to Jay, who was still standing at the banquet.

"Uh, Jay, do you think you could dance with me?" Blanca asked, a slight blush on her face.

"I suppose so. Do you know how to?" Jay asked

"A bit," Blanca responded.

"Alright then. Let's head to the dance floor." Jay said simply. So, hand in hand, those two also walked to the dance floor. Now, the only people left in the Fun Bunch without a dancing partner were Senel, Chloe, and Will. When there was only a minute left on the 'Choose your dance partner' clock, Chloe stood up from the girls' bench. Slowly, she walked toward the bench, her heart pounding, heading to where Senel sat and began to muster up the courage to ask him to dance with her. When she reached a spot right in front of where Senel was sitting, she greeted him and asked the inevitable question:

"Ah, Coolidge...Would it be alright if you danced with me?" Chloe asked nervously, her face turning a bright red as she did so.

"Sure, Chloe," Senel replied with one of his oblivious smiles. Chloe was overjoyed.

"Th-Thank you," the knight responded as she held her hand out toward Senel. He gladly accepted her hand, and the two walked over to the dance floor together with the other two pairs. As the three couples gathered at the dance floor, Shiina's piano began to play while Isabella began to sing 'A Firefly's Light'. As the music began, two out of the three couples, Senel and Chloe, and Blanca and Jay began to slowly waltz to the slow music, while Norma and Moses just do-se-do'ed their way through the song. Coincidentally, at the start of the song, Shirley returned to the Fountain Plaza, all dressed up in her formal costume. When she saw the three couples dancing, she'd known that she'd missed the opportunity to dance with Senel. Either way, she sat down on the girls' bench, watching the three couples slowly waltz to the tune of 'A Firefly's Light'.

"Hehe," Shirley began, smiling to herself, "Senel and Chloe look like they've been dancing together for years...It's kind of cute." Although hardly anyone could hear it, Will picked up the sound of Shirley's mumble and walked toward her.

"Did you say something, Shirley?" The scholar asked.

"Ah, no, it's just...Take a look at those two. They look so..." Shirley trailed off, but looked toward Senel and Chloe, waltzing together. Will followed her gaze and he, too, looked at the two, as well.

"Yes, I agree. When I look at those two dancing together, it brings back memories of myself and Amelia at their age..." Will replied, beginning to lose himself in his memories. The two both watched Senel and Chloe while they danced, although the two were both unaware of the attention they were getting.

"Coolidge, I didn't know you could dance. Who did you learn from?" Chloe asked as she danced, a bit amazed at how well Senel could dance.

"Stella taught me, actually. She said she never had anyone to dance with at Ferines festivals. She taught me so I could dance with her..." The marine responded, remembering the shining face of his lost love, although...Something was different. The pain in his heart that would always return to him when he thought of her was gone. Perhaps, slowly, he was getting over the loss of Stella.

"I see," Chloe began, "She must have been an amazing teacher."

"Yeah, she really was," Senel replied. When that was said, the two stayed silent for a few moments. The second verse of the song was beginning, and Senel noticed the fireflies that had begun to fill the night with their small light. He then looked back down to earth to see that all three couples were still waltzing, but slower than before. On the other side of the dance floor, Blanca and Jay just began to sway, their hands held. Blanca had her eyes on Senel and Chloe while they danced. Jay noticed the look in her eyes and asked her if anything was wrong.

"No, I'm okay. Thanks for worrying, though," the young girl told her dancing partner. Even though she continued to dance, Blanca couldn't help keeping her eyes on her parents. Although she hated them, there was something that told her not to, almost like a small light in her heart telling her not to hate at all. In moments of noticing them, she saw Chloe and Senel stop. They were now only swaying slowly, like branches in a storm. At this, she squinted her eyes and began to dance again, but she accidentally stepped on Jay's foot. The ninja let out an 'ouch' as she did, but the young girl sincerely apologized, trying to keep her mind off of her parents.

Meanwhile, on Norma and Moses's side, Norma was also surprised by how her not-so-bright partner could dance. She was about to ask how a stupid bandit like Moses knew how to dance, but before she could, she saw the one thing that made her night. She elbowed her dancing partner to show him.

"R-RED!" Norma called softly while a rather large smile widened on her face.

"What is it, Bubbles?" The clueless bandit asked. Before she could say anything, Norma let go of Moses and pointed to Senel and Chloe. Moses, too, was also surprised at it.

Chloe's head now rested on Senel's shoulder, and the two were still swaying calmly, as if the two were lost in an eternal dream. Norma eyed Senel's reaction, as well. His face was of something she'd never seen of him before: The marine was looking at the knight almost lovingly. Before Senel noticed the two taking a quick look at them, they both ran back to the bench. The song was already nearing its end, anyway. Following them were Blanca and Jay; they, too, sat down on their designated benches, leaving the marine and the knight alone on the dance floor together. When the music finally stopped playing and the song was over, Chloe slowly put her head up from Senel's shoulder following the applause they received from their friends.

"Yayy! Senny's finally making a move!" Norma cheered.

"...Shut up, Norma," the couple responded coldly. Norma knew, though, that it was all denial.

"Then why are you two still holdin' each other?" Moses added, noticing their position. At the bandit's words, they let go of each other as soon as possible. Chloe's face turned a bright red; even Senel's face was a bit red. The two were going to comment on Moses's remark, but before they could, Curtis spoke up on the mic once more.

"Brothers! Sisters! This ends our celebration of LOVE! Isabella and I were tickled to perform at this party, now, weren't we, Isabella?"

"Yes, Curtis."

"So, what does the damage come to?" Will asked blankly. For a moment, there was complete silence. The party didn't even know that the Bouncers were charging money...Were they? Before anyone could ask Will why he even asked Curtis the question, the Bouncer leader and his vice jumped off of the stage and walked until they were right in front of Will. The two Bouncers looked at each other for a moment and then began cracking up as if they were just about to pass out from a tranquilizer shot.

"Brother, Brother, Brother. Don't you know that the Bantam Bouncers perform for _CHARITY_? We will_ NOT_ charge a fee of any sort! Especially for all of you, being warriors of _LOVE_!" Curtis explained. As he screamed 'Love', Blanca, who was sitting on the girls' bench fell out of her seat and began to relive her memories as a toddler: Being lost in this same place, almost tortured by the Bouncers until her mother came in and stopped him. Unfortunately, it was too early for that mother to even notice her daughter. So, facing her fears, Blanca regained herself for that time and walked up to Curtis.

"You...You call yourselves warriors of love, but all you do is scare lost little children by screaming into their ears! You should be ashamed of yourself!" The young girl yelled, her fists and teeth clenched tightly. At the sight of this, everyone backed up. They had never even seen Blanca this angry before.

"JJ, what the heck is_ this_ about?" Norma whispered to Jay, who was standing next to her.

"I actually don't know. Perhaps Senel knows about this, though," Jay explained, turning his head to Senel. The marine tried to explain as best he could to the two, holding back a bit of laughter.

"Apparently, she's had a bad experience with the Bouncers in the future." Senel responded.

"I see..." Jay murmured. He then put his gaze back on Blanca, whose little rant made Curtis very, very...Well, it was hard to describe. Perhaps a mix of what looked like anger, fear, and astonishment. When the Bantam leader pulled himself back together, he looked Blanca straight in the eye.

"You..." he began.

"Y-Yes?" Blanca asked, shivering.

"COULD BE ONE OF OUR BACKUP DANCERS! So much spunk, and yet--" Before Curtis could finish, Blanca was already on the ground, shaking with fear as if a small earthquake was rumbling right through her.

"Curtis, I don't think her parents would even let her do that," Senel told the purple-haired man. The Bouncer leader then shrugged, but told the little girl on the ground some sage advice:

"Well, if I'm still around in whatever time you're in, just say 'sing' when you're around and Isabella and I will sing like we have never sung before! Hopefully, we'll still have a job for you." Before Blanca could deny his offer, though, Isabella noticed something bright and white falling from the sky.

"Look, everyone, a shooting star is headed right for us!" The Wonder Bantam called to everyone. The second she finished, everyone looked up toward what Isabella had seen.

"No, that's--!" Chloe called. She was interrupted by Blanca.

"Another memory? But...Why? I got them all back. Unless..."

"Unless what?" Will asked.

"There was someone calling to me when I got my memories back. It was this voice...And she said that getting my memories back was her 'job'...Or something. And before I got to the plaza, she said that I'd be able to 'brighten the trust with my family'..." The young girl explained. The light was getting closer to the plaza now, but no one flinched at it at all. To the party, it was just another memory; it was nothing to worry about at all.

"Wait just a second...Doesn't that sound a bit familiar?" Jay began, "Blanca, did you get this person's name?" Blanca shook her head and told the ninja that she didn't even know what this person looked like besides the face that she was female.

"Maybe she'll tell me now..." Blanca told them, eyeing the so-called 'shooting star' that was about to collide with her. She heard no one's response though, for before they could say anything, the light collided with Blanca, sending her to the exact same place she had seen when she was regaining her final memories. As she took a step forward, the voice spoke to her.

"Welcome back, Blanca IrelQues Coolidge," The voice said calmly.

"Why am I still here? I got all of my memories back, didn't I?" Blanca asked in a state of confusion.

"Yes, you have, but...Your family ties are not strong at all."

"It's only because they don't care about me at all. They never believed in anything for me, did they?"

"This is why I have come. I must prove your thoughts wrong, young one," The guiding voice began. Just like if it were regaining a memory, a small portal opened. It lead to the Coolidge residence once again, an evening glow coming through the windows, but this time...There was something missing from it: Blanca's room. The voice then continued, "I...Should not be showing you these at all, child, but know that it is for your own good. This is to prove that even before you were born, your parents had a future for you, as all parents do for their children. Now, go in." The young girl then did as she was told, and slowly walked into the portal, unaware of what was going to happen.

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_Blanca was sitting on one of the kitchen chairs again, un-noticed by the woman sitting across from her, reading, who resembled Chloe. She looked...Different, although Blanca couldn't exactly tell what was different about her. Before she could stand up and try to at least see if Chloe could see her, Senel walked through the door, his expression a bit nervous, but curious at the same time. He smiled and waved at Chloe, who waved back to him in return. Sitting down on the seat next to Chloe, he tried to read the papers that she was going through. From the looks of it, Senel knew what these papers were for._

_"So, how'd it go?" Senel asked, smiling at his wife. She knew what the anxious look on her husband's face was for, so she cleared things up by saying only three words._

_"It's a girl," Chloe simply replied as a sly look formed on her face as she did so._

_At this, Senel's reaction was one of disappointment. Knowing him, of course he'd want a son. But from what Blanca was seeing, he was taking this a bit too seriously, as the look on his face went from curious to stupefied._

_"Wait, what?"_

_"The baby's a girl, Senel. I win the bet." Chloe replied. At this, Blanca's eyes widened._

_"Wait a minute; they had a bet about me? About_ what_, exactly?" Blanca asked herself, ignored by the other two people in the room. Luckily, though, her question was answered by Senel's memory._

_"You mean the one I didn't agree to?" Senel asked. Chloe sighed at this and shrugged, putting down her papers._

_"You know you agreed to it. The baby's a girl, so if she does use iron eres, I'm training her to become a strong swordswoman." Senel shrugged at this and tried to turn her in another direction. Daughter or not, he'd rather be the one to train her than Chloe._

_"Are you sure about this?" Senel interrogated, grabbing the pile of papers that Chloe had been reading and began reading them himself. He read it once. Twice. Even a third time. Chloe had not been lying. At this, it was still a big disappointment for Senel. He wanted a son because training would be the best quality time the two would be able to have together. But now, would he even see his daughter much at all when she grew older? Sighing, the marine looked down at the table, lost in thought._

_"What'll I be able to do, then? If you're always out training her when she gets older, I...probably wouldn't be able to see her much."_

_"Senel, I know you're worried about it. But I am, as well. We can't just run away from this. It's our future. And hers, as well."_

_"I know, I know! But...What can I do?"_

_"Be her father," Chloe began, putting a hand on her husband's shoulder, "It's your job, after all. Just because I'll be training her doesn't mean that she won't be able to spend as much time with you." At those words, Blanca remembered all of the joyful times she spent with her father. She knew that Senel wasn't going to be a bad father at all despite his worries at this time._

_"Yeah...I can still spend time with her. I can still try being a father," Senel began, but he'd wondered where Chloe was actually getting this advice from. He decided to ask how she knew all of this._

_"Don't underestimate me, Coolidge," Chloe began, calling Senel by his last name like she used to, "Just because I'm a knight doesn't mean I don't know anything about children. Although, I did get some advice from Raynard. Maybe you should talk to him, as well."_

_"Yeah, I probably should. He knows more about being a parent than anyone else we know," Senel replied, looking back up from the table. Chloe nodded in agreement, but she sighed, as well._

_"It may take a while to get used to these kinds of things, though. I'm still not supposed to fight anything. Hopefully, I don't lose my edge..." The knight said. When she said that, Blanca remembered that even in her time, her mother was the best swordswoman around. She'd always wanted to be as good as her mother, and...She still did. She tried talking to her parents even though she knew they couldn't hear her._

_"You two...You don't have to worry about anything. Even if you do get mad at me sometimes, or force me to do something I don't want to, I...I still love you..." The young girl said, a lone tear rolling down her soft cheek. She tried giving the illusions of her parents a hug, but before she could, the scenery melted away, just like before. The dome of light did not appear, though. Instead, she was in a whimsical place where stars and galaxies adorned the floors and walls. She'd wondered where she was, but before she could ask, the source of the voice appeared: A tall, pale-blue haired woman, wearing a green dress with large flowers adorned on them. Blanca saw and heard her applause from the few feet away where she stood._

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"Well done, Blanca IrelQues Coolidge, well done," The woman told her. A calm, caring look was on her face as she smiled.

"Who are you? Are you the one that's been helping me?" Blanca asked, her voice quivering.

"Yes...I am Grune, the Weaver of Time. I have been guiding you through your memories ever since you've come to this place, child. I was the white light that shone every time you regained a piece of your memory. The Summon Spirits, whose treasures that you retrieved, I also created," Grune explained to the girl.

"Grune...So you were the one helping me. Well, I probably couldn't have gotten my memories back if it wasn't for you, so...Thank you so much, Miss Grune," Blanca thanked the goddess as she bowed in respect to her. She, too, bowed a small bow, but opened a portal back to Werites Beacon, in front of Senel's home, and put her hand towards it, as if she were pointing to it.

"Now, Blanca...I want you to go back to this place. Your parents in this time are waiting for you."

"Is this still the past?" Blanca asked, turning her head towards the portal.

"Yes. You do have things to do there, correct? Goodbyes to say, Apologies to make..." Grune told her. The young girl nodded to the Weaver of Time, and she thanked her once more for her kindness in helping her regain her memories.

"Like I've told you before, child, it is only my job. Ah, and...Before you go, could I ask you a favor when you return to that place?"

"Y-yes, ma'am. What do you need?"

"I'd like you to say 'Hello' to all of my old friends. You know them all quite well already," Grune explained to Blanca. Blanca nodded, and slowly walked into the portal, hearing Grune's final words from then:

"Time, my child, is like a symphony. You must play it through until the very end. There is no turning back to the start when you're already in the middle of it," the voice echoed in Blanca's mind. When the echo stopped, she had already found herself in front of Senel's house. The lights were on, and both Senel and Chloe were inside, although their topic of discussion was not known by the little girl. Slowly, she opened the door and saw the two of them cautiously saying, "Who's there?"

"Ah, uhm...It's just me. Blanca."

"Blanca! Where were you?" Chloe asked, her expression obviously worried. Blanca smiled at the knight, something she wouldn't have been able to do in the morning, and explained everything to both Chloe and Senel.

"So, someone showed you a memory that you weren't supposed to see to get your trust back for your parents?" Senel asked, trying to sum up the situation.

"Yes, and that person that showed me...I'm pretty sure you know her," Blanca replied.

"Who showed you your memories?"

"Her name was Grune. She told me to tell you that she says 'Hello'," the young girl said, smiling. Both Senel and Chloe looked at each other.

_"Grune?"_ They both asked.

"Y-yeah, she said she was 'the Weaver of Time', and she told me that she was helping me with my memories since I got here. She said that she created the Summon Spirits, as well."

"So, it really is her," Senel began, a slight smile crossing his face, "It was good to hear from her."

"...Yes, the others will be surprised to hear this, I'm sure," Chloe said, smiling.

A few moments later, Blanca let out a tired yawn. She had been through a lot in the passing day, and tomorrow...It would all be over. She would be home with her mama and papa. Although, their reaction was still unknown to the small girl. She didn't know if they'd be relieved or angry or not even care. But, she did know that no matter what, her parents did love her.

"It's quite late, Blanca. Are you going to bed?" Chloe asked.

Blanca nodded and said, "Yeah. Do you think you could tuck me in, Miss Chloe?" Chloe was a bit embarrassed, but she agreed to tuck Blanca in, perhaps for the last time for two years...

As Blanca got under her covers, Chloe sat in the small space on the end of the couch where Blanca wasn't. She then asked, "Why did you ask for this, all of a sudden?"

"Well," Blanca began, "I need to talk to you and Mr. Senel about something." Senel, who was back in the kitchen, came out of it when he heard his name. He then sat down at the table and asked, "What did you need to talk to us about?"

"It's about this morning. I know I was being really rude to you two, but I had a reason," Blanca explained.

"What was the reason, exactly?" Chloe asked.

"I...Can't tell you two now. But I'll tell you before I leave tomorrow, I promise. Either way, I..." Before she could continue, she sniffled a bit. She knew she was about to cry. But holding it all back, she sat up and gave Chloe a hug as she said, "I'm really sorry...But everything's okay now, right...?" Chloe turned her head to Senel to see what his answer was.

"Yeah. We forgive you. Right, Chloe?" Senel asked, smiling.

"Right," Chloe began, "Now, it's getting late. You should get some rest so you can get back home to your parents in the morning."

"Hehe, okay, Miss Chloe," Blanca began as she let go of Chloe and got back under the covers, "Goodnight, Miss Chloe. Goodnight, Mr. Senel." Both of them wished the little girl sweet dreams, and as she dozed off, she thought:

_"But, Mama...I already am home with you and Papa."_

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The very next day, Blanca woke up bright and early to see that everybody was already at Senel's house for Blanca's departure. Senel had told everyone about how Blanca had seen Grune, and how she was guiding the young girl this whole time without anyone noticing. The first thing that Blanca had woken up to was Norma saying, "So, did you really see G-Girl? Details, Whitey, _details_!"

"Uhm...She told me to say 'Hello' to all of you. And then she said something that I kind of didn't get when I left..."

"Ooh! Ooh! What did she say? Did she say anything about me?" Norma asked, desperate for the status of her old friend.

"Not that I remember, no, sorry." When Norma heard that, she pouted a bit, but then Jay asked what she'd actually said.

"She told me...'Time, my child, is like a symphony. You must play it through until the very end. There is no turning back to the start when you're already in the middle of it'," the young girl responded, directly quoting the goddess.

"Advice, indeed. I suggest you keep that in mind the next time you try time-traveling," Will said, kiddingly. Before anything else was said, though, Senel beckoned everyone out of the house. It was time to go to the Altar of the Sea, and there, to return Blanca home. As quickly as she could, Blanca got her sword and ribbon and followed her father. So, with that being said, everyone took the duct to the Altar, eager, anxious, and a bit sad to see the climax of this story. Upon making it to the Altar, everyone walked into it, and, to no surprise at all, it remained the same as it had been the last time the Altar was visited days before. In the middle of the traveling, though, Shirley walked up to Blanca and whispered in her ear.

"Are you going to tell Senel and C before you go?" The Ferines girl whispered. Smiling proudly, Blanca nodded.

"Yeah. It's probably the best thing I can do now," the swordsgirl whispered back.

Together, they continued their travels to the top. While they were higher and higher in the Altar, Blanca's heart began to pound faster and faster against her chest. She wasn't sure what Senel and Chloe's reaction would be if she told them that they were her parents. Would it change the future for her at all? Or would these questions just go unanswered to her until she finally came back to her present? Soon, though, all would be revealed, as moments later, the party arrived at the top of the altar. To their surprise, Rem waited at the altar, floating above the main altar while she looked around. When the party came into view, she greeted them all.

"Welcome, children of man. I have heard it from my brethren that you have successfully retrieved all of out treasures. We thank you all kindly, and our thanks will be expressed by taking this little girl home," Rem explained, pointing to Blanca, "If you must say your goodbyes, please do them now, as you will not see these people in this form ever again." Blanca nodded as if to mean that she understood, and she told everyone to stand around the Altar before she left to say her last goodbyes to these people.

"Well, uhm..." Blanca began, "I guess it's time for me to go...Thank you all so, so much for what you did for me. I don't think...I'll ever forget it. But would it be alright if you all did me a favor?"

"Whaddya need, Whitey?" Moses asked, tilting his head.

"I...I want you all to forget that this happened. If you remember, then, well, I'm probably going to be in big trouble when I get home."

"That's probably going to be pretty hard to do, Whitey. We can't just forget a whole week of our lives, and we probably won't forget you!" Norma commented. At this, the little girl smiled. She, too, thought it was a burden for them to forget, but...It was the only thing that could keep time to as close as it was before she left.

"I know, but...In the future, you're all used to seeing me. If you knew what I was doing in the past, you'd think I was messing with your minds."

"We're _used_ to seeing you in the future?" Jay asked, a bit confused.

"Yeah. I probably shouldn't tell you anything else, though. But...I need to say goodbye to my parents before I leave," Blanca simply explained.

"Wait just a second. Your parents are_ HERE? NOW?_" Norma asked. At this, Shirley and Blanca exchanged smiles, and the young girl nodded to the treasure hunter. Blanca stepped off of the Altar that she was standing on and walked a few feet away from it, right in front of Senel. When she was close enough, she looked up at him and gave him a big hug. At the moment, Senel though she was crazy.

"Blanca, what are you--?"

"I love you, Papa..." Blanca murmured to her father. It was a quiet murmur, yes, although everyone heard it. A few gasps were heard, and a bit of confusion spread throughout the party, but Blanca knew that she had to tell her parents, who were right in front of her, to know who she was. After she let go of Senel, she saw the look on his face. It was one of pure shock. But...Senel saw the resemblance. The long, snow white hair was similar to that of his own. He understood that Blanca really was his own daughter from the future, even though it was a bit hard to believe. After she backed up a few steps, she smiled at Shirley once again. Shirley then nodded towards Chloe, and Blanca began to walk up to her. Like Senel, Blanca gave Chloe a big hug, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Blanca, you can't mean..." Chloe said, her face completely red.

"I love you, Mama...I'm sorry we never had that duel, though. But...There's always the future, right?" The young girl told her mother. At this, Blanca saw Norma jump high in the air, higher than she'd even seen anyone jump. Another squeal was heard from the treasure hunter, but she heard Will calm her down.

"Y-Yes, of course..." Chloe told her daughter. As she let go, the knight noticed a resemblance to her, as well. Blanca's chocolate-brown eyes looked exactly like her own, almost as if she were looking at them through a mirror. While Blanca backed up, she saw everyone's reaction: Surprised. Shocked. And perhaps a bit awed by the fact of this coincidence. Getting back to the altar, she began to speak again.

"My full name is Blanca IrelQues Coolidge. I came here because I searched thick and thin to find my parents an anniversary present, and, well, I'm sure you've heard the story. They didn't care that I'd gotten them one. I dropped their present on the ground before I left, so...I never knew what their reaction was. But still, I think they may have accepted it. I guess, now, that there's nowhere to go besides home to find out."

"_IrelQues_..._White Wings_..." Shirley began, "Who gave you that name?" At that, Blanca smiled and turned to Shirley.

"My aunt gave it to me when I was born," the young girl responded. She then kept walking toward the altar until she was finally on the middle of it. This was it. Blanca IrelQues Coolidge was going back home. Turning her head towards the sky, she saw Rem and said, "I'm ready, Rem. Please, take me home..." The summon spirit nodded, and everyone began to wave goodbye to Blanca. The young girl did the same as tears rolled down her pale face. When Rem was ready, she began to chant a Relares spell, and the Altar of the Sea began to light up. Soon, a white beam of light enveloped the main altar. In this, Blanca heard a whisper. It was the voice of Grune, whispering that same phrase:

_"Time, my child, is like a symphony. You must play it through until the very end. Do you understand, Blanca? Are you ready to go back home?"_

"Yes," Blanca began, "I understand now. I'm ready to return home." when that was said, the only thing Blanca saw was white light. It stayed in her sight for a few moments, until it all turned to black again. Hearing a small, 'thump' sound on the ground, and a pain in her stomach, she'd known the she had fallen onto land. Slowly, she opened her eyes, only to see a hand and arm reach out for her, the arm clothed in a blue sleeve of a coat. Blanca knew who this person was. Quickly, she opened her eyes and held her hand tightly.

"Mama! Mama, it's you...It's really you..." The young girl said, crying hysterically. She'd known she had seen her mother just a few minutes before she'd left, but this was different. It wasn't Chloe Valens that she was hugging anymore, though. It was Chloe Coolidge, the mother that had been waiting for Blanca since she left. Letting go a bit from the hug, Chloe whispered, "You know, I'm not the only one here." Hearing that, Blanca slowly let go of her mother to see everyone from the party and even a few more: Senel, Will, Norma, Moses, Jay, Shirley, Hunter and Pandora. The first thing that Blanca did was run up to her father and hug him, as well.

"Papa! You're here, too!" Blanca began, "But...Are you still mad at me for what I did? Are you mad at me because of the rose?"

"Well, Chloe and I weren't exactly the happiest people when we found out you were gone, but...We did feel guilty for not listening to what you had to say." Senel responded, his voice a bit deeper from what Blanca last remembered.

"But how did you like the rose?" Blanca asked while she let go of Senel a small amount, smiling.

"It's beautiful, Blanca. We loved it." Chloe told her, smiling as well. When Blanca let go of Senel, she ran right towards her two friends, Hunter and Pandora. Pandora, despite the shy person that she was, was the first to comment on Blanca's return.

"Welcome back, Blanca..."

"Yeah! How was the past, Whitey? I want details, _details_!" Hunter cut it, obviously overjoyed by the return of his friend.

"It's...A really really long story. I'd say, like... over 45,000 words. I'll tell you later, alright?"

"It's soundin' good to me!" The bandit child said, full of energy. Trying to be in the middle of the crowd of the future 'Fun Bunch', she asked everyone an inevitable question:

"How did you all know where I was going to come back?"

"Well, C got this really weird feeling that you'd be here, and, well, you were!" Norma told the young girl.

"Yes, and as we traveled, we, too, got the same feeling that you would be here," Will began, "And, by the way...I hope you know that you're going to have to make up all of your schoolwork, Miss Coolidge." At that, Blanca's head drooped in disappointment as an _'Awww...'_ escaped her mouth. Ever since this started, even she remembered that she'd have to make up all of the stuff she missed in school.

"Ah, Will, let 'er live a little. She jus' came back, after all!" Moses replied, an idiotic smile on his face. Jay, on the other hand, shrugged at the bandit and nodded.

"As much as I hate to say this, Moses here is right. Let her at least say hello to her friends and family for once, then give her the extra work," The ninja said. Now, even after about 12 years of knowing each other, Moses and Jay still had their usual quarrels, and of course, one of those quarrels started when Jay was done speaking. Blanca laughed at their fight, as it reminded her of the time when Moses fell into one of the ponds of water at the Altar of the Sea in the past.

"Hahah! Pa n' Uncle Jay are fightin' again. Leave it to them to ruin somethin' important," Hunter commented.

"Hunter..." Moses began, "I hope you know that's costin' you yer dessert tonight." Everyone laughed at this except for Hunter, who was clearly ticked off with a lack of dessert for the coming night.

By now, the sun was already at its peak of the afternoon, and it had already been about twenty minutes since Blanca had returned to the future. She was getting a bit tired of the Altar, so she asked her parents if she could go back home to her room.

"Of course," Chloe began, "You haven't seen the house for a whole week, after all."

"Actually, Mama...I saw it this morning," Blanca told her mother.

"What? How did you see it this morning when you just got back?" Senel asked, confused at what his daughter was telling them.

"Uhh...Never mind! I-It's nothing. I just met some really nice people from Werites Beacon in the past, is all. But I learned something important there, I guess."

"Oh, really?" Chloe asked.

"Yeah. Time is like a symphony. You must play through it until the very end. There is no turning back to the start when you're already in the middle of it," the young girl explained as she and the party began to walk down the Altar and towards home.

"That's good advice to keep in mind," Jay added, commenting on Grune's quote.

"Yeah...Although, I have to say, the symphony of the past was a bit more adventurous that the symphony of the present," Blanca told her friends. Most of them, at least the ones that weren't children, agreed with it. Walking home, she noticed something in the corner of her eye that looked like the white light of a memory. She turned around for a moment and stopped.

"IrelQues? Is anything wrong?" Shirley asked, a worried look on her face.

"Nah, I'm okay, Aunt Shirley...I just thought..." At this, she began to walk again, but she changed her words back to her thoughts.

_"I thought I saw the conductor of the symphony,"_ the young girl thought. But she knew, no matter what, that she'd keep everything from that Symphony of the Past in her mind for a very long time. Knowing that, she kept walking towards her home at Werites Beacon with her friends and family. She was about to begin the symphony of her very own future.

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-gasp- CUE THE CREDITS! -plays 'my tales' on some generic boom box-

Well, that was like, so unpredictable, right? –Sarcasm- Uhm, yeah, it was pretty predictable, I know. If only I'd made Blanca's eyes blue. That way, you guys might have been confused! Bleh, oh, well, too late for that. Huh…Let's see…Oh, yeah! Let me give you guys a heads up on what to expect from me in the future. Well, the next project I'm working on is called 'Hunting for a Hunter', a NormaxMoses musical. That's right, you heard me, a MUSICAL. See my profile for more info. Speaking of my profile, I'm going to have a few more pictures up sooner by my pal Saori now that SotP is over and you all know what happens. Speaking of her, please give Saori a big, metaphorical round of applause. Without her help, Symphony of the Past would not be up on the internet today. She and her sister Naomi were great sources of help, and I dunno what I'd do without them. -sniffle- Okay, well, thank you SO MUCH for reading this fanfic and reviewing if you have done so! I probably wouldn't be anything without you guys, either, so you all deserve a pat on the back, too! You'll also be mentioned in the prelude to 'Hunting for a Hunter' if you review this chapter, too. It'd make me really happy. O.o; And now, I take my leave. School starts in two days, and I'm as nervous as heck. See you in October for the NormaMoses musicaltastic! –waves-

SotP FINISHING STATS:

HITS: 2555

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